365 Days, 365 Pages
by ekans-slyth11
Summary: Cho Chang has a secret, but what if the one to find it was the last person she would expect to understand it. Draco/Cho fanfic
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

Hey Guys! I'm back!

I remember writing my first fanfic on here when I was 15-16 and boy was that a long time ago. I had a Cho/Draco fic that I deleted and gave up on since the story sounded "un-magical" like and felt that it was too "muggle-ish" for being a Harry Potter fic. So four years have past and I am bored out of my mind and I've decided to write another HP fic that I'll hopefully finish. I'll give Draco and Cho another go and see where it takes me.

As well, I've changed a few things (Especially who dates who….) This story takes place when Cho Chang was a 6th year and Draco was a 5th year. I'll try to be as truthful to the book, but it'll be quite difficult and it's been a while since I've read the fifth book (haha), so please bear with me.

Review and Comment! Thanks!

**Disclamer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

—

_Qui feng quing_

_Qui yue ming_

_Luo ye yu hai san_

_Han ya qi fu jing_

_Xiang si xiang jiah zhi he ri_

_Ci shi ci-_

_**Translation:**_

_Autumn wind clear_

_Autumn moon bright_

_Fall leaves gather and scatter_

_Jackdaw perch again startle_

_Each think each see know what day_

_This hour this ni—_

"Miss Chang. Miss Chang. Miss Chang!" Professor McGonagall spoke as she waved her wand to grab the Ravenclaw's attention.

Blinking, Cho looked up at her Transfiguration professor with a serene, dazed look on her face. "Y-Yes professor. I-I mean, sorry professor." She stumbled through her words.

The professor simply raised a brow at her student and continued to talk to the rest of the class. "Now, please read chapters 45-50 in preparation for our next class. You may all leave." With that said, the whole room shook and moved whilst the students stood up and prepared to exit the room.

"Cho, are you okay? These day dreams…they're a bit odd, no?" Marietta asked concerned. She had been noticing her friend's odd behavior in class for the past couple of days.

Cho simply swung her book bag around her shoulder and followed the rest of the students out into the hallway, stopping slightly behind the doors to wait for Marietta, who stumbled slightly behind her. "I'm alright. The semester's about to end, and I'm just stressing about the exams. That's all." She replied calmly while her brown hues stared blankly back at her friend.

The halls began to fill up with students of different houses, each with their own schedule at hand. Loudly as each student walked by, Marietta and Cho opted to wait till the hallway had begun clearing before proceeding. "Exams are in five months Cho. What on earth are you talking about?" Marietta asked pin-pointedly confused.

The soft-spoken, Ravenclaw girl realized that she wasn't being concise with her answers and had simply answered absent-mindedly. "I-can…I mean, I want to study early. These classes are no picnic, you know? Besides, isn't it better to.." Cho began, but momentarily stopped her words as she paced into the hallway. Continuing, she said, "…study early an-"

"Cho watch out!" Marietta called out as she quickly darted a hand out to pull her friend away from…trouble.

"Watch it!" growled a pale snake. Her green orbs darted back and forth between the two Ravenclaws standing in front of her.

Cho quickly turned around to see who it was. "S-Sorry." She replied; her fingers curled tight around the spine of her book.

"Yeah…Yeah. Now move out of my way." Said the short, black haired girl as she and her friends marched towards the Transfiguration classroom.

Marietta simply raised a brow at the girl, amused at her arrogance. Turning her attention to her friend, she spoke. "I swear, they're lucky they're snakes and not worms or els—"

"Or else, what?" A familiar pale-faced boy broke into Marietta's words.

Rolling her eyes, Cho simply looked back and forth between the boy and her friend. "Nothing." She replied coldly, before taking a hold of Marietta and dragging her along.

Smirking, the boy simply followed the rest of his friends towards the classroom. "I saved you a seat!" Pansy excitedly said, pointing towards the desk next to her.

Draco simply heaved out a defeated sigh and sat next to the girl. Resting his book on top of the desk, he stuck a hand inside the open space—a weird habit of his— underneath the desk and felt something inside. Grabbing a hold of what seemed like a small notebook, he quickly laid it on top of his book and read the engraved letters on the cover. Mouthing the words, _"Zhang Qiu"_

"Alright class, settle down and open your textbook to chapter 27." Professor McGonagall spoke as she moved from behind her desk and towards the front of the platform, sitting in front of the class. Darting her eyes to the seemingly starting squabble by the left side of the room, the professor sternly pointed out. "Mr. Zabini! I wouldn't mind using you as our example for today's lesson, as you so _loudly_ and _eagerly _volunteer over there." The tall boy simply grinned as he followed the professor's instructions by opening his book to the said chapter. With the whole room finally settled, the professor began to speak again. "The lesson about changing…."

—

"Are you okay?" Harry asked concerned as he stretched a hand over, offering Cho a strawberry.

"Huh? Oh, ah thanks…" She simply replied, taking the strawberry from Harry. "What did you ask again?"

Raising a brow, Harry continued to scribble away on his parchment. "You've been acting quite strange lately. Are you sure you're alright?" He asked.

Cho shrugged and bent down to take a hold of her Charms textbook. "I'm not sick. Don't worry." She replied while subtly slamming her book on the table. This whole, _'are you alright?_' issue was beginning to irritate her. "What are you doing?" She asked, wanting to change the topic.

"Oh, I'm trying to plan something with Hermione for tomorrow's lesson; we need to learn something else besides conjuring our very own Patronus." He replied while continuing to furiously scribble more things down.

Reaching further into her book bag, Cho felt a little confused; something felt wrong. _'I remember putting it in my bag this morning.'_ She thought to herself, completely ignoring Harry's words. "I think I left something in the library. I'll meet up with you for dinner." She quickly said, standing up.

"Harry. Cho. Hey guys!" Hermione greeted upon entering the room of requirements. "What's going on he—Oh Cho, you're leaving?" She asked quite confused by the girl's eagerness to get out of the room.

"Ah…alright. I'll see you in front of the Great Hall later." Harry replied, looking a little confused himself. Soon after, his attention shifts to the frizzy haired girl. "I have the lesson plan here. Come take a look" He eagerly spoke, waving his friend over.

Hermione smiled and nodded; folding her skirt before she sat next to the raven-haired boy, she gave Cho a wave. "See ya."

Cho quickly grabbed a hold of her things and waved back. "See you guys later." She replied. Before leaving the room, she couldn't help but steal a glance of the two. Heart sinking a little, she couldn't help but question Harry and Hermione's relationship. _'Not now Cho, that's not as important'_ She thought to herself before completely disappearing behind the wall.

—

"Who the bloody hell writes like this?" Draco muttered to himself a little irritated with the fact that he couldn't understand a damn thing on the little notebook that he had found. Turning to the next page and surprised to find it written in English, Draco began to read it.

_She liked peaches and strawberries. I'll always remember that. Perhaps one day our paths will cross once again. _

_-Z.L._

Confused more than ever, Draco, irritated, shut the small thing closed and slid it inside his robe's pocket. "Whatever…" He muttered to himself as he continued to pace down the hallway. Turning a corner, not assertive enough to stir clear, a somewhat heavy weight immediately forces him to fall down on his bum. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?" He growled loudly as he pushed himself up. Piercing grey eyes darted at the culprit.

Cho quickly gathered her belongings and stood up, dusting herself. "I'm sorry! You don't have to be sour about it!" She hissed in reply. Her brown hues stared right back into Draco's grey ones. The tension lasted for about a split second before Cho slung the strap of her book bag around her shoulder. "Oh, before you waste your _breath_ correcting me, don't worry, I'll watch where _I'm going _next time." She added; pure sarcasm dribbled out of her lips while she said it.

"You have quite the manners. Seems like you've been hanging around Potter too much." Draco snickered loudly; loud enough for Cho to hear.

About a foot away, Cho immediately turned her body around upon hearing the snake's words. "At least he's not all talk." She replied smirking. "Now Mr. Malfoy, if you don't mind, I have better things to do than to converse about silly things in the hallway." She added before turning around and continuing towards the library.

Draco watched Cho proudly walk along. Irritated with the fact that she acted like a complete smartass—in his opinion—in front of him. "Stupid Ravenclaw…" He muttered to himself. As he was about to make his way down the hallway—towards the dungeons—he noticed something on the floor. Kneeling to take a closer look, Draco reached for what seemed like a necklace. Allowing the gold chain to dangle loosely along his fingers, his eyes examined it closely. The snake noticed something familiar etched on the pendant—something he had seen before.

_Z.L._


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**

I was reading my old fanfictions and I couldn't help but laugh at how bad they were (hahaha). I hope this fic is up to par.

Review and Comment! Thanks!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

—

The dim-lit _burrow_ that housed the snakes looked empty than usual. While the fireplace glowed a deeper red, a distinct figure kept his solemn gaze into it. Soon, his own thoughts crash and break upon hearing a familiar girl's voice. "Draco, where were you? I didn't see you during dinner." Pansy asked sighing as she sat across the boy.

Draco rubbed the chain of his new found keep between his two fingers—the silkiness of it ironically urged the flooding of questions within his own thoughts about the letters on the pendant and the notebook—as he continued to stare blankly into the pith of the fireplace. "Nowhere…" He replied.

"Nowhere means that you were somewhere and not there." Pansy smugly worded. "Well, I'm meeting up with Zabini to do the homework for that ding bat's class. Do you want to come with?"

"I have to do something." Draco simply replied as he stood up and began to head towards the dormitory. Without a second further, he immediately turned around to address another thing. "Tell Zabini to return my book." With that said, Draco retired to the dorms.

"Fine. Whatever…" Pansy muttered unenthused as she made her way out of the commons.

The room was a circular mess: Unkempt beds and unkempt dressers. Except for one corner. Draco—by nature— was raised into a very obsessive compulsive family. At a young age, his parents had taught him about what it meant to be proper and beyond adequate—perfect. Plopping his tall frame onto his clean and well made bed, his eyes quickly affixed on the badge that Professor Umbridge had ever so kindly bestowed upon him and his friends. "Inquisitorial…Squad." He muttered to himself with a smirk as he reached out for it and tossed it aside. "Bollocks…" He sighed. Soon enough, his thoughts rolled back on tonight's events. "Bloody murder…" He cursed as he reached down for the same notebook he had been trying to _understand_ for the past couple of hours. After continuously running his eyes through the tight leather-bound object, he had noticed a few things about it. The notebook was numbered from 1 to 365, marked on the top right corner of each page. Each page was neither heavily filled nor lightly marked and most of it—almost all—was written in a different language. Draco had come across a few pages that had English writing on them, alas the theme repeated—the whole notebook seemed to be written for someone.

"Ey Malfoy, Pansy's wonderin' when you'll start your shift." Blaise asked upon entering the room.

Draco quickly sat up to find that it has been an hour. "Where's my book?" He asked in reply as he quickly slipped on his robes.

"Here. Oh, I smeared some custard on that one page about mandrakes. Sorry 'bout that." Blaise replied smirking. "Hey. By the way, are you taking Pansy out this weekend? I mean, cause it's her birthday and all."

Rummaging to take a hold of his prefect badge, Draco returned his gaze back to Blaise and simply offered him a raised brow and a smirk. Without a single word, Draco exited the dormitory—the commons—in a quiet fashion.

—

Fingers intertwined, and head leaned against the wall, Cho sat on her bed restless. She had been to the library, to the Astronomy tower, to the Great Hall, to the commons—everywhere— and she still didn't have any luck. _'I wonder where I left it? The owlery maybe? Hogsmeade? Wait, I haven't even been to Hogsmeade in a week.' _her thoughts soon scramble as the rest of the girls enter one by one and settle into their own corner.

"Hey Cho, you've been quiet the whole evening. Is eve-" Marietta didn't even get to finish.

"I'm alright." Cho immediately answered, calmly. "Good night. I'll see you in the morning." She added before slipping on a robe and exiting the room with a book clutched in her hand and a wand in her pocket.

"Wait Where a-are…ah! Never mind." Marietta, irritated, hissed as she slipped under her sheets. "Night!" She called after.

Cho quietly made her way to the commons and sat in front of the pith. The warmth soon crept up her frame as she opened her Transfigurations textbook to Chapter 45. _"Did I leave it in Tran_—" it's been a repeated cycle as her thoughts break once more upon seeing the familiar face in front of her.

His smile radiated from the photograph—that sat neatly in between page 455 and 456—, happily standing next to the familiar, smiling girl that once had light in her eyes. The picture was taken in front of the familiar Quidditch pitch two years ago. Yellow-Black and Blue-White flags waved calmly behind the couple. One arm wrapped tight around the girl's frame and the other held tight onto a broomstick. They were more than content. Fingers lightly smeared the front of the Polaroid and soon after, tears followed shortly—creeping into the scene. Cho had tried to get a hold of her emotions after Cedric's death, but the constant reminder of his smiling face made her remember how vulnerable she really was. He did everything for and with her. He spoiled her, which she reluctantly admitted to herself, but was obvious to the rest of their friends. She had thought about dating other men to forget about him, but alas only to find herself dating the one guy that ultimately brought her to remember **him**_**. **_

"Right." Cho mumbled to herself while wiping her tear-stained cheeks. She immediately stood up and exited the Ravenclaw commons.

—

"I'll take the left." Draco coldly spoke as he tucked his robes closer to his body. The hallways seemed colder than usual, which made Draco even more uncomfortable. He hated the dark. He felt more comfortable surrounded by warm, bright lights, than standing in between cold stonewalls. Nonetheless, no one knew about this, but him.

Pansy grabbed a hold of the boy's arm and said, "Draco, wait." Pansy's timid nature showed mostly when she was around Draco. The girl's slight obsession with the boy has been this teenager's dilemma, which completely infuriated her in the inside. She hated having to beg for his attention when he was around; she hated what she changes into when she's around him. Quickly, her grab softened into a release. "Er…ah-" She stumbled on her words. "-ah did Zabini return your book? I told him that if he didn't return it, he'd get it." She quickly composed.

Draco remained standing with his arm slightly dangling behind and his back towards her. Turning around, he responded. "Zabini wouldn't be afraid of you."

Draco's _harsh_ and _cold_ responses usually elicited the defensive side in most people. For Pansy, this was always the case. "What do you mean he wouldn't be afraid of me? Whatever."

The boy simply shrugged. "By the way, he wants to take you out this weekend for your birthday. You should go" Draco replied, amused. He knew quite well about Pansy's infatuation and he usually tried to refrain from encouraging her to think that they had a chance of being a couple. Oh don't get Draco wrong. He liked her personality very much, but something about Pansy didn't click; she seemed more of a friend than someone to be romantically involved with. "You have your wand. Don't do anything stupid." He simply added as he turned back around and started heading towards his side.

Pansy stood there wide-eyed. Mouth agape, she couldn't find any words to describe how disappointed and a little hurt she was. "Whatever…" She mumbled to herself as she walked along, only to find herself crying softly.

Draco stopped to turn around and made sure that Pansy wasn't following him. A guilty sigh escaped his lips as he rubbed his forehead lightly. _'She'll never get it'_ He thought to himself as he turned back around. Torches lit with each step he took as he continued to patrol the dungeons.

"Mr. Malfoy." A woman's voice called from behind.

"Professor Umbridge?" Draco, questioningly, muttered to himself as he turned around to see his DADA professor. "What are you doing down here? At this time of the night?" He asked.

The woman merely chuckled and waved a gloved hand in front of her. "Oh don't go investigating me. I'm the one who should be asking those questions. Now, I want you to—"

"Professor, I'm currently on duty. Professor Snape ask—"

"Well professor Snape will need to understand that _**I **_asked you to do something for me. I wouldn't worry about him boy. Now, follow me." The woman covered in pink retorted. Draco, without another word, followed the woman. Up the staircases and passing through empty rooms, finally, both Draco and the professor ended inside her office. "I'd like to ask if you've had any luck finding out what that no good, classmate of yours is up to. I have an inkling that he's been doing something against the ministry's policy!" She spoke in quite a singsong tune.

Draco sat down on one of the chairs in front of her table and laced his fingers together. He wasn't _that_ enthused with the professor's ideas, but being on her good side paid quite a lot. "No professor. I haven't spotted Potter and his round of scoundrels lately. However, we've been on the lookout of anything suspicious going on." He replied.

"Perhaps you're just not doing your job very well if we still don't have any clue what he is up to. Something tells me that it has to do with Albus, but without solid proof, we cannot have any solid punishment. Go on then. I want you to keep an eye on him. You and your friends better watch him closely. Report to me immediately if you find something." The professor sternly said as she stood up to walk Draco out of her office.

The boy simply nodded and walked out into the hallway. Yawning as he walked along, he noticed something move from the corner of his eye. Turning towards that direction, he not only caught who it was, but silently followed behind.

—

Cho stood silently in front of the familiar wall. Pacing back and forth three times, a door immediately showed and opened, which she quickly slipped past into, unaware of another person's presence. Inside, the room was brightly lit by a number of torches and candles. The shelves full of books stood opposite sides as Cho walked to the center of the room. Gold tapestries hung high above the ceiling as she slowly took a hold of her wand.

Draco, on the other hand, hid behind a wall as he watched what Cho was doing. _'What's Potter's girlfriend doing?' _He thought to himself as he closely observed. Blinking in disbelief, he quickly moved closer to the wall as soon as Cho had disappeared behind it. "This is insane….ah. Alohamora!" He muttered as he paced back and forth, hoping that the wall would do the same effect with him. Pausing to see if a door had appeared, Draco grumbled to himself defeated. Pacing back and forth once more, Draco thought quietly to himself. Finally, a door appeared.

Her back was turned towards the door as she raised her wand high enough. "Expecto Patronum!" She spelled out. Silver sparks shot out from the tip of her wand, but the execution was a little bit mediocre. Her mind wasn't quite in the happiest of all moods, which made it rather difficult to deliver the spell. "Bollocks!" She grumbled as she raised her wand once more, hoping she'd get the full effect of the spell.

Draco slowly stepped inside the room. Succumbing to the brightness that it held, his eyes slowly adjusted, before finding himself to watch whom he had just been following. Taking a step further, he waited for the right time to speak. After watching a rather _entertaining_ attempt of the Patronus charm, he spoke. "That was a failure, innit?" Chuckling to himself, he continued to move closer to Cho.

Cho's body tensed as she heard Draco's voice. She didn't know if she was just hearing things, but as she turned to face his direction, she knew that this was really happening. "Wh-Wh-Wh…"

"-Wh-Wh-What? Cat got your tongue?" He teased, smirking. His eyes began to wander around the room as he processed the place. "So this is your hideout? You, Potter, and the rest of his _people_? To think that you'd be the one to foolishly give it away." He continued to taunt, amused.

"Draco, it's not what you think. It's just an empty room. I'm going to go now." Cho quickly replied as she swiftly stuffed her wand in her pocket. Head bowed down, she tried to walk past Draco to only find the boy grabbing her by the arm.

"So what do you do here? Some weird magic that I should know?" He asked, chuckling as his grip on her arm tightened.

"Draco it's getting late, if we-"

"You weren't this nice to me earlier? What's gotten into you?" He asked. His smirk was prominent by this time. Cho simply kept her head down. She wasn't in the mood to really converse. More so, she wanted to just spend this time alone. It's as if her whole energy has been drained out of her system. Her silence did not do her any good. "20 points from Ravenclaw for wandering the halls in the wee hours of the night!" He added.

Cho's eyes widened. "What? But you're not even supposed to be here too!" She retorted as she pulled her arm away. _'Who am I kidding? I'm reasoning with a snake.'_ She silently thought to herself.

"Do you want me to deduct more points? Tell me, what that mudblood and that Potter have been up to? Surely you'll know. After all, you are Potter's pet." His words escaped his lips like a serpent's tongue hissing.

"Good night." She simply said as she turned around, ready to head out of the room, but Draco wouldn't let her go without any answers. Quickly grabbing her arm, he carelessly pulled her towards him, causing the girl to lose her footing. "Ah!" Cho cried out.

"Don't cross me. What's Potter up to?" He asked again, tightening his grip on her.

"Nothing. Now let me go! It hurts!" She replied, hoping Draco would believe her. She couldn't tell him what was really going on. Harry wouldn't forgive her and so would the newfound friends she's acquired. "There's nothing going on."

"10 points from Ravenclaw." He simply replied, while the sadistic side of him did care if the girl was hurting from his grip. "I know that you know what's going on."

Cho, by nature, was fragile. She allows things to get inside her mind. Her vulnerability worsened, especially, when Cedric died. Tears quietly rolled down her cheeks as she heard Draco deduct more points. "I don't know anything." She replied, head held down.

"Fine. Whatever. You're useless. I don't understand why Potter keeps you around." He replied, irritated, as he released his grip on her. Turning around, he was about to leave the room, but he quickly turned to face her as he remembered something. Fishing for something from his pocket, he quickly tossed it towards Cho.

Cho blinked through her tears as she saw the glinting object that Draco threw her way. Wiping her eyes, she knelt to pick it up only to find the surprise. "Where did you get this?" She asked as she laced it through her fingers. Her eyes staring curiously back at him.

"When you obnoxiously hit me this afternoon, I picked up after you. Ridiculous." He replied. "A cheap present from Pott—"

"My father gave it to me." Cho simply cut in as she pocketed the necklace. Ignoring Draco's words, she began to move towards the door.

Draco simply raised a brow and thought out loud. "What's Z.L. then—" but he quickly caught himself before finishing his thought

"It's my father's initials." was all Cho said, having caught him speak out his thought, before leaving the room.

'_Her father…'_ Draco thought to himself before showing himself out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:**

I know there aren't many Cho/Draco shippers, but something about this pairing makes me so intrigued about the potential that I feel is possible. Anyway, thanks for reading.

_**Juliet:**_Thanks for the comment! I really see Draco as a warm-hearted soul with a bad boy façade. Hope to hear from you again!

Review and Comment! (Make my day people :D)

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

—

Cho scratched her head defeated while her tiny pygmy owl fluttered around the room. "Bugger…" She muttered with a sigh as she tried to catch the little thing.

"Having problems?" Harry asked chuckling as he successfully caught the little scoundrel. "Here you go…"

Cho smiled as she took a hold of her owl. "Thank you. I haven't seen you all day." She said while writing down the address on the package she was trying to send.

"I've been with Ron and Hermione all day. We just came from Hogsmeade." Harry replied.

Cho's eyes stared blankly at the brown box lying in front of her. She wasn't sad that Harry spent most of his time with his _close_ friends, but she just found it a little irritating that he would usually go out with them instead of going out with her. "Oh…" was all Cho replied.

"So what have you been up to?" Harry asked, not keen on noticing Cho's change of expression.

"Nothing really. I've been hanging out with Marietta mostly." She responded as she sent her owl with her package off. "Well, I'm going to get something to eat, do you want to come with?"

Harry quickly tied the package onto Hedwig's leg before turning to look at Cho. "Ah, I just ate." He answered.

Cho gave out a weak sigh before nodding. "Alright then, I'll see you whenever." Irritated, she quickly set foot to the Ravenclaw commons. "He has time for them, but not for his ow—Owww!" Unexpectedly, Cho quickly felt her bum hit the stone, cold floor. Rubbing the side of her hip, she slowly got up; a flight of apologies came rushing out of her as she did so. Her brown hues quickly set themselves on the familiar face she really wasn't in the mood to see.

Draco was coming from the library carrying a stack of books. It was quite the surprise for those around him to see him checkout books from the library, or better yet to be in the library himself. Needless to say, with the difficulty of juggling a stack of books, it was even more difficult to watch where he was going. Another step further, he found himself running into someone. "Bloody murder!" He hissed to himself as he quickly stacked the fallen books on the floor. Before Cho could even say a word, his eyes quickly fixed on her flustered frame. "Do you not know how to walk? Do you need lessons?" Draco asked a little irritated. Cho wanted to take back her apologies and shove them right back down her throat. She chose to further ignore the prat than to say another word for fear that she could say something that would cost her house to lose more points. Dusting herself off completely, she tried to walk away, but Draco was fast to make her wait. "Where do you think you're going? Aren't you rude."

"I have to go meet up with a professor. I'm already late." Cho lied as she tried to grab her arm away, but failed.

"Well while you're on your way, why don't you carry these for me. After all, it's the least you could for all this." Draco replied as he tightened his grip on her arm. "Well…what are you waiting for?"

Cho sighed to herself as she knelt down to pick up the books, but only to be stopped by a familiar voice. "Malfoy, let her go." Harry exclaimed as he saw what was happening in front of him.

"Ah, why isn't it the boyfriend himself come to save his _princess_." He spat as he pushed Cho's arm away, causing the girl to be pushed aside. "Trying to be her knight and shining armor huh?"

"Malfoy leave her alone!" Harry responded with fists clenched. Turning his attention to Cho for a split second, making sure she was alright, he quickly said, "Cho, go" before setting his flaming greens back on the slytherin.

Cho, a little bit worried, left quickly walking the opposite direction.

—

"AH!" Draco hissed painfully as he sat patiently, waiting for Pansy to finish treating his cut. "AH! Bloody hell Pansy! Do it slowly!"

Pansy simply raised a brow and pulled her hand back. "Can't believe you allowed Potter to do this to you."

"I didn't have my wand with me" was all Draco said as he hissed in pain. His stone, grey orbs looked at the fiery pith, irritated. "If only I knew what him, that weasel, and that mudblood were up to." He spat. "He'd know better than to be so proud."

"Hold still, will you!" Pansy ordered as she dabbed the cotton ball lightly on the corner of his lip. "Next time, bring your bloody wand."

Blaise, tossing an apple in his hand, had walked down from the dormitory, finding interest with what was going on. "Eww you two need to get a room."

"Zip it Zabini" Draco spat, eyeing Blaise, irritated.

Blaise simply chuckled as he slumped on the couch opposite to them. "What happened to you?" He asked as he studied Draco closely. "Oooh..that's going to hurt when you tongue Pan—"

"Blaise! Shut up or I'll bloody damn well hex you before you could even think about shagging someone." Pansy cut in, slightly annoyed.

Blaise simply shook his head. Biting a piece of the apple, he leaned forward to take a hold of one of the books stacked on the table. "Since when did you speak Chinese?" Blaise asked out of curiosity.

Being done with Pansy's non-delicate touch and Blaise's assholyness coming alive like always, Draco stood up, pushed Pansy's hand away and walked over to where Blaise sat and snatched the book back. "None of your business." He simply retorted as he took the rest of the books and made his way to the dormitory.

"Geeze, what's wrong with your boyfriend Pans." Blaise asked as he bit into his apple.

Pansy simply sighed, irritated and stood up. "He's not my boyfriend." She replied through gritted teeth, before making her way towards the girl's dormitory.

Blaise shook his head, amused with the fact that he could really push people's buttons. "Fine! Whatever..Geeze..just trying to make decent conversation." He muttered to himself before exiting the commons.

Draco, on the other hand, sat himself comfortably on his silky sheets. Sitting up against the wall, he quickly brought the books close and opened the notebook to the page he was working on. He had been in the library all day trying to translate the first page of the notebook. "Zhia..no..wait, is that even supposed to be a 'Z'? Ah!" He mumbled as he flipped through pages and switched books from time to time. "Ok, I think I got it!" He added a little bit excited as he scribbled down the rest of the words. Proud of his achievement, he closed the notebook and all the books shut, before leaning back to read the translated version of the first page of the notebook.

_To my beautiful Qiu,_

_The moment that you came into the life of papa, I could never find the words to explain how blessed and thankful I am. Who would've thought that the fates would bestow me such a wonderful gift. Your eyes shine bright like your mother's and your smile like hers in the summer morning. And as I hold you in my arms, I could tell how special you would be when you grow up._

_Qiu, my darling Qiu, I write to you not because I want you to remember me, but I want you to remember how much I love you, even from the moment you have been given to us in this world. Perhaps you will understand as you read my story—our story. And I promise, we will one day go and chase butterflies in the field. _

_You and me._

_Forever loving,_

_Z.L. _

Draco blinked after finishing. He did not have any clue as to who this Qiu was nor did he have a clear idea about Cho's relationship to this Z.L. Is this Z.L Cho's father? Or is it just a coincidence? It wasn't a big deal but the mystery behind the notebook piqued his interest. He wanted to find out what the notebook has to say. He was determined to decode the messages. Perhaps it would be a useless case, but Draco was simply curious. Translating the messages would probably help him find out if the notebook belongs to someone he knew—perhaps to Cho. Hearing footsteps populate the room, Draco immediately pushed his things aside and got ready for bed.

—

"Green or Blue? Maybe Blue, huh?" Marietta asked as she indulged herself with the dresses her mother sent her. "Cho. Cho. Cho!" She called out to her friend, noticing the blank stare in her eyes.

Cho blinked and nodded. "Ah..yeah…what? Oh the dress, right. Blue." She replied, having no interest in what was going on.

Setting her things aside, Marietta sat close to her friend. "Cho, something's bothering you. Don't even pretend. Is it Harry?"

"No, goodness, no. I've just been thinking about certain things lately…" she paused, hesitating for a little before continuing her train of thought. "About Cedric." Cho softly added; her voice quivered a little as she spoke.

Marietta frowned slightly and laced both arms around her friend. "Come here…" She simply whispered as she cradled her best friend. "Cedric's in a better place. He wouldn't want to see you like this."

Cho remained quiet as she looked out the window. It's during times like this that she needed Cedric. She needed his assurance. It was Cedric who brought her closer to the very person she didn't expect she'd ever meet, but now, _he_ was also gone and the only thing that linked them was lost—was out there somewhere. Tears silently streamed down her cheeks as she leaned on Marietta. "Thank you…" She whispered solemnly.

The next day proved to be a sunny day. Cho squinted through her sheets as the sun shone brightly through the window. "Rise and shine princess!" Marietta greeted while trying to pull the girl out of her bed. "Come on! Let's go!"

"Give me one more minute!" Cho groaned as she tucked her blanket closer to her body. "Or you can go."

"Let's go before the three broomsticks is filled to the brim again! Come on Cho Chang!" Marietta replied. Without another word, she quickly grabbed a hold of Cho's sheets and pulled them towards her.

Cho was pulled in with the sheets and found herself falling off the bed. "Hey! What was that for?" She asked slightly annoyed. "Alright! Give me a few!" She added, before marching herself to the bathroom.

"Aren't you looking cute!" Marietta complimented as Cho stepped out of the bathroom wearing a tight-waist floral dress that fell down to about three inches above the knee. She wore black tights to tie the outfit together and polished it down with a pair of yellow Mary Jane pumps. Her hair was tied up into a high ponytail. With that, she also wore a thin yellow headband to finish the whole look.

"Thanks." Cho replied smiling as she followed Marietta out.

The trip to Hogsmeade took less than an hour. As the rest of the students went their separate ways, so did Marietta and Cho. "Where's Harry?" Marietta asked as she snacked on her pastils.

Cho simply shrugged wondering why she and Harry rarely go on these trips together. "He's probably with Hermione." She replied. A little tint of jealousy was obvious in her response.

"Woah. Wait! But you guys are dating! What's he doing with her?" Marietta asked curiously.

Another shrug came from Cho as she led the way inside the three broomsticks. "They're just good friends" was all she replied before quickly making her way to one of the tables in the corner of the room.

"So what are we having la'ies?" The familiar waitress asked.

"Two butterbeers and a basket of lemon pockets please." Marietta asked as she laid her coat neatly behind her. Turning her attention back to Cho, she asked "so what if they're just good friends. He should know better than to put you second. You're the girlfriend for Merlin's sakes!"

"I'm not bothered by it." Cho lied. She wasn't bothered by it _a lot_, but it did bother her to _some_ extent.

While people of different sizes, ages, and race conversed inside the inn, a few more students entered. Cho and Marietta, engrossed in their own conversations, did not notice the group of students that sat next to their table. "To think that someone who lives in London would know what tacky shoes meant." Pansy commented as she sat to the chair closest to Cho.

Marietta and Cho broke into silence, blinking as they heard Pansy's comment. "Excuse me? And to think that someone who lives in London would know what common courtesy is." Marietta retorted as she looked at Pansy with annoyance. "Oh, wait, never mind, you're the one to be excluded in that pool; I forgot." She added.

Pansy blinked appalled and quickly sat up on her chair. "Why you little bi—"

"Pans come down. They're not worth your time." Blaise interrupted as he waved a waitress over. "Just enjoy your birthday in peace."

"Let's go move to another table. I'm not going to have little miss 'I'm so bloody well perfect' ruin our day." Marietta hissed as she stood up. Cho simply nodded and followed after her.

—

Draco didn't want to go out to Hogsmeade, but Blaise—being the best at pulling out the guilt in people—pulled him into going. Stepping inside the three broomsticks, he quietly sighed to himself as he scanned the room, trying to find his friends. The inn was definitely packed as he maneuvered his way inside. Not paying close attention to anyone or anything, a loud crash suddenly came hurdling his way and sooner than expected the boy was covered in butterbeer. The whole room seemed to stop and stare at the commotion. Draco, embarrassed, grunted to himself as he moved to a table to grab a few napkins to wipe his mess. He heard a few apologies from the waitress, which made him irritated even more. "Watch where you-" he paused upon seeing a familiar face. "You!" He pointed out.

Cho blinked in alarm realizing whom the waitress had bumped into. It was her fault to begin with, not watching where she was going as she bumped into the waitress and alas proceeded with the domino effect, which ended with Draco having a huge butterbeer stain on the front of his shirt. Wanting to get out of there as quick as possible, she tried to pull Marietta towards the door, but instead was quickly stopped by Draco's voice. "Ah..Ah..I'm sorry.." She tried to apologize, but the look on Draco's face showed his fuming irritancy towards the girl. Draco threw the napkin aside and quickly grabbed Cho's arm. Marietta, in a panic, tried to pull her friend away and reason with Draco, but his grip on Cho was far stronger than Marietta's and he simply did not listen to reason. Cho's worried eyes tried to ironically assure Marietta that she'll be fine as she followed Draco for fear that he'd do something far more embarrassing to her than a simple butterbeer stain on her dress. "Where are you—"

"Shut up!" Draco rudely shouted as he pulled Cho towards the secluded area of the village. Once out of sight, he quickly pushed the girl aside. "I've had it with you!"

Cho stumbled a little but quickly caught her footing as she grabbed a hold of a railing. "I said I was sorry. It was –"

"Save it!" He instantly cut in as he looked from Cho to his shirt. "This is an expensive shirt!"

"It's just butterbeer. It'll come off; here let me get my wand! If you also want, I can buy you a new shirt. Now please, I have to go back to Marietta or she'll think you hexed me to oblivion." Cho pleaded.

"I don't mind doing that to you at this rate. Let her think the truth." He so confidently replied. "If you weren't so clumsy and stupid, _I_ wouldn't have a problem." He added.

Before Cho could reply, a familiar voice echoed loudly in the background. "Harry…" She mumbled to herself as she turned around to see if he was close behind.

"Damnit!" Draco muttered as he, himself, heard the familiar voice. Not saying a word, he quickly grabbed Cho's wrist and dragged her onward

"Where are you taking me?" Cho asked in a panic as she tried to pull herself away from Draco.

"I said shut up!" He hissed through gritted teeth; his grip on Cho escalated into a mid-violent one. "I'll really hex you if you don't shut up."

Cho, knowing what's good for her, kept her mouth shut as she allowed Draco to drag her far from the village and into the deep forest. "Do you at least know where you—"

Draco simply gave her an irritated look, making the girl bite her lip and lower her head.

The town's chaos slowly faded as the two walked deeper into the forest. And while the day seemed brighter and apparent, it seemed to get darker for Cho.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**

I am so terribly sorry that I haven't been uploading quickly. I'm currently in summer school and have just been busy with my classes. Thank you for being patient! :)

_**fanfic reader:**_ Thank you for the compliment! I hope to hear from you again.

**_RecklessGleekChic: _**That's so awesome that you are hooked! And thank you for the compliments! I hope I won't let you down and the rest of the readers as I continue to write the story. It's very challenging to write Draco's character and keep with it since all I want to do is make him go head over heels for Cho, but we'll see as the story progresses. Haha. It's fun to write them both this way :) I hope to hear from you again.

_**Juliet:**_ It's awesome to hear from you again! I, myself, am excited as well with what's going to happen as i write.

Thanks for reading everyone! Review and Comment!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

The towering redwoods and cycads stood still as the breeze maneuvered its way in between them. Birds chirped silently, while the serene sound of the forest remained calm as possible. Colors of green and brown mixed and matched, as the flowerless forest seemed to be a never-ending path. Exhausted, Cho found a sturdy log to sit upon, while she gently unhooked her heels and rubbed her sore ankles. "Draco, it's just a stain." She muttered, a little frightened by the boy's actions.

Draco ran his fingers through his smooth and silken hair, thinking to himself. Was he stupid enough to actually wander into the forest without having a single clue where to go? Most would argue yes, but some would lend a sympathetic thought towards the boy. After all, he was already one point down to Potter. "Will you be quiet? Do I have to repeat myself 10 million times before you realize that your voice is annoying as my…" he stopped and dropped his hand to his sides.

Cho slipped her shoes back on and stood up straightening her dress. She's had it with Draco, and the calmness in her slowly evaporated with every word—nay—every letter the boy said. "I've had it with your ludicrous acts! It was just a simple stain!" With that said, Cho quickly took her wand out and pointed it towards Draco's chest. "Scourgify!" She called out, causing the mess on the snake's shirt to be _washed_ off.

Draco watched in horror as Cho pointed her wand at him, but as he saw what she did, his heart rate quickly normalized. "Do that again and I'll hex you." He hissed as he straightened his shirt. The ravenclaw was aggravated to the bone. Oh how she wanted to REALLY hex Draco into oblivion. She wasn't sorted into Ravenclaw for nothing. Simply keeping her lips sealed, she hesitantly followed Draco's lead. If there was one thing she wasn't good at, it was geography and maps. She'd prefer solving arithmancy problems any day, but deciphering a map would cause more problems, than actually solving anything. "Watch your step." Draco grumbled, causing Cho to blink in surprise.

'_Was that something nice that just came out of his mouth? No, Cho. You're hearing things.'_ Cho thought to herself as she carefully stepped down onto a fallen log. With heels on, it was far difficult to walk along a path of scattered leaves and twigs—it was quite slippery. Trying to watch her step, she carefully dipped, hopped, moved, and skipped over things as Draco, nonchalant, walked onward unmoved by Cho's difficult state. Catching herself off guard, Cho found herself tripping and falling into a shallow ditch. "OUCH!" She cried out loud in slight pain, causing Draco to stop and turn around. "Owww…" She groaned.

Draco quickly moved to help Cho up. "Who wears those kinds of shoes to begin with?" He mumbled as he stretched an arm out. "Hold my arm." He ordered as he helped pull Cho up.

"Hiking in the woods wasn't on my agenda to begin with!" Cho painfully addressed as she grabbed tight onto Draco's arm. "My ankle…I think I broke it." She muttered while rubbing the area.

The boy quickly unhooked the girl's shoes and set them aside. "You clearly can't walk." He replied as he looked at the darkening sky above.

"I can perform a—"

"No! If you do something stupid, people will blame me!" Draco quickly cut in.

'_It's not like you can get in any more trouble already.'_ Cho thought to herself. "Then what do you propose?" She asked in pain. "I can't walk!"

Draco looked left and right, up and down, before crouching in front of Cho. "Get on my back." He grumbled, not happy that he had to carry the girl.

Cho shook her head. "Oh..no..I'm not gett—"

"Do you want to stay here and get eaten by some two headed beast? Or would you just be quiet and follow what I say?" Draco interrupted as he waited for Cho to get on his back.

'_Following you was what got me into this mess on the first place!' _Cho thought silently to herself before carefully getting on Draco's back. Watching her ankle, she slowly laced her arms around Draco's neck.

"Hold your shoes." Draco ordered as he handed Cho her shoes before grabbing a hold of Cho's legs behind him. Making sure she was positioned well on him, he slowly got up and began walking. Awkward silence dawned upon the two as they moved in unison (literally). Draco turned left and right, and at a certain point, Cho stopped paying attention.

"Tell me if you're tired, you can put me down." Cho silently spoke as she heard Draco's heavy breathing.

"I'm fine." Draco replied proudly as he moved past trees and cut through bushes. In a few hours or so, which seemed like Days for Cho, the two were finally on castle grounds. "Merlin." Draco sighed as he saw the castle not far ahead.

If it were at all possible, Cho would quickly hop off Draco's back and make a run for it, but a broken ankle proved otherwise. "You can just walk me to…"

"Shss!" Draco interrupted once more as he moved quickly and quietly through the halls. "I don't want anyone to see us." He added with a tint of plead in his voice. To think that the Slytherin Prince was seen carrying Potter's pet was just an interesting sight to all. Up the staircases and past different portraits, Draco quietly slipped inside the hospital wing to find a surprised Madam Pomfrey staring at the two.

"Mr. Malfoy? Ms. Chang? Dear me! What on Merlin's sakes happened?" Madam Pomfrey asked as she helped Draco move Cho to a bed.

"She tripped and broke her ankle." Draco answered vaguely as he cracked his neck from side to side. Cho wasn't heavy, but carrying that weight for a long time was definitely a workout.

Cho simply kept her lips shut as Madam Pomfrey adviced her to sit still while she went ahead and got a few things to treat the ankle. Turning her attention to Draco, she couldn't help but offer a small smile. Oh don't get her wrong, she was still bloody furious, but that small gesture amidst the bad ones he conjured made up for a little bit of his wrong doings. "Thank you." She muttered.

Draco simply nodded and watched as the head nurse returned with a bottle of Merlin knows what. Not finding himself needed in the room, he quickly turned around and left the premise.

—

"Oh my goodness! Cho!" Marietta squealed as she saw her friend walk inside the commons. "What happened? Where's Malfoy? Are you okay? Did he do anything? I asked Harry and he…."

Cho smiled weakly and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "I'm fine. I had a little accident and was at the hospital wing."

"Wait? Hospital Wing? What? But I didn't see you and I—"

"Marietta, I'm fine. Malfoy got tired of me and just left me. I walked back to the castle and had a little tripping accident on my way." Cho explained…vaguely.

"Then explain why you look like you've been rolled over a pile of leaves and twigs? Dear, you look like a disaster." Marietta asked curiously.

"Just cause!" Cho replied with a chuckle. "Oh! Did you see Harry? Where is he?" Cho asked, hoping Marietta would stop asking her about what had happened.

"Well, I saw him right after Malfoy dragged you away. I told him what that Slytherin did and he went ahead and looked for you. I didn't see him after. I thought you were with him, but when I saw him with Hermione walking back to the castle, I started to panic." Marietta replied.

Cho couldn't help but frown a little as she heard the words _'him'_ and _'Hermione'_ in one sentence. "Oh…I better go clean up and change into something clean before dinner then" was all Cho replied, before making her way to the dormitory.

—

"Where were you?" Pansy asked calmly, but you could tell from the expression on her face that she was beyond pissed.

Draco simply ignored her as he walked past her to sit on one of the sofas. Resting his feet on the coffee table, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

Pansy moved to where he was and sat next to him. "Draco, I asked you a question."

Draco, irritated, raised his head up and looked blankly at Pansy. "I needed to deal with something." He replied.

"Liar. You were with that Ravenclaw! I saw you walk out of the inn with her!" Pansy exclaimed disappointed.

Sighing, Draco simply rubbed his forehead and said "You already knew where I was, then why did you still find the need to ask."

Pansy, as strong as she was, can be an emotional wreck given the circumstances. And most of the time, those circumstances involved non other than the Slytherin prince himself. "How could you do this to me? For one day Draco can't you think about others and not yourself? It was my birthday and I wanted to celebrate it with you! Is it that hard to do something for me? Is it?" Pansy asked as she began tearing up.

If there was one thing that Draco couldn't take, it was the sight of a woman crying. "Pansy you're making a big deal out of this. Just go and sleep on it." He replied coldly as he stood up and made his way to the dormitory.

Blaise, who was watching from afar, stopped Draco the moment he walked by him. "Man, she's upset and it's her birthday. The least you could do is tell her you're sorry and Happy Birthday."

Draco pushed Blaise's hand away and ignored his comment as he proceeded to the dormitory. Irritated, Draco slumped himself on his bed and ran his fingers through his hair. _'Why are women so difficult'_ He thought to himself as he stood up and grabbed a quill and a piece of parchment before leaving the dorms and heading to the owlery.

Feathers from an assortment of owls greeted Draco as he stepped in the owlery. Beckoning for his owl, he took the liberty of scribbling a few things on the parchment he carried. Unsatisfied with his list he scratched a few things, before writing down a new set of list. Pulled into his own thoughts, he was unaware that someone was watching him close by.

Cho had forgotten to send her mother something that she quickly trotted off to the owlery before dinner. Dusting the feathers that stuck to her as she entered the place, her eyes landed on the familiar blond she had just shared an interesting afternoon with. Curious as to why the boy seemed so caught up with his letter, Cho took a risk and spoke up. "Hey."

Draco jumped in surprise as he heard Cho's voice. Turning with a furrowed brow, he asked irritated. "What are you doing here?" Quickly, he shooed his owl away and tried to hide the parchment he held.

Cho simply chuckled to herself as she saw the black creature flutter away. "You don't have to scare the whole place. Ah….." She paused awkwardly. She was furious with what Draco had put her through, but at this point, she really didn't care anymore. "….you're sending a letter?" She asked, not knowing what else to say.

Draco simply raised a brow before moving to the other side of the room completely ignoring Cho. Beckoning for his owl once more, he quickly laid the parchment back on the table and stared at it defeated. _'I don't have a clue what she wants.' _ Draco thought to himself, before looking up to see his owl staring back at him. Grinning, he gently brushed its back, before looking back at the parchment. _'Pansies and chocolate. Wait, what kind of chocolate?_ _And does she even like Pansies? Why is this so hard?' _Draco's thoughts screamed in nuisance as he tried to think of things that Pansy might or might not like. Cho watched from a distance as she carefully tied the letter on her owl's foot. Moving towards the windows, she sent her owl off and turned her gaze back to Draco who looked up in time to catch her eyes. Blinking and a little bit embarrassed, she quickly lowered her head down and was about to leave when Draco quickly spoke up. "Wait!"

Shutting her eyes at the sound of his voice, she slowly turned back around to respond. "Yes?" She asked, body slightly tensed.

Draco made sure that no one else was around or entering before looking back at Cho. "I need to ask you a question." He replied before setting his quill down. Slightly embarrassed at the fact that he had to ask her this, he stumbled through it. "W-What did Pottergiveyouonyerburffday…?" Cho squinted as she tried to process what he had asked. Shaking her head, she asked for him to repeat himself, making Draco hiss at her. "I said. What did Potter give you on your birthday?"

Cho blinked several times, not clear if she heard Draco right. "Are you asking what Harry gave me for my birthday?"

Draco nodded in annoyance. "Yeah..do you have to repeat it like a parrot?" He asked.

Chuckling to herself, Cho moved closer and replied. "No, but it's funny that you're asking me this. Ah…he really didn't get me anything. Are you trying to give someone a birthday present? A girl maybe?"

Blinking from the storm of questions Cho quickly fired, he instantly responded "None of your business…" before scribbling whatever he wrote in the beginning.

"If this girl is your mother, a heart-warming letter always works or a bottle of perfume. On the other hand, if it's not a relative, you can't go wrong with chocolates and sweets. Do you know what she likes?" Cho asked, curious as to whom Draco was purchasing a gift for.

Draco didn't answer, but kept in mind what she was saying. Cho, taking his silence being normal, continued. "Well…Flowers works too, but I suggest not to give her the kind that can be associated with her name. Like giving someone named Rose a rose. It's just cliché. If this person's name isn't rose, white roses are always lovely during this time of the year."

Draco quickly crossed out the word pansies on his list and replaced it with white roses. Cho trying to take a peek, noticed the change and simply chuckled in the inside. "Is that all you wanted to ask me?"

"Yeah" was all Draco said before folding the parchment into a scroll and sending it off with his owl.

"Ok then…well I hope she likes it." Cho replied before turning around, ready to leave.

Draco looked at Cho and couldn't help but think how passive this girl was. Most of the girls in the castle would simply yell and bicker all the time, especially if he made a half-ass comment towards them. Unaware of where he was putting his hand, Draco didn't expect an owl to peck on it. "OUCH!" He yelled as he quickly retracted his hand and saw the small line of blood.

Cho quickly turned around upon hearing Draco yell. Rushing back inside the owlery, she moved next to him. "Are you okay? What happened?" She asked as she spotted the boy holding tight onto his hand for dear life. "Let me take a look." She asked, reaching for his hand.

Draco, hesitant, shook his head and quickly pocketed his hand. "It's nothing." He muttered before pacing forward.

Cho, quick enough, grabbed a hold of his arm (this time) and carefully, but quickly pulled his hand to her. "Tell me that it's nothing when you get an infection." She replied sarcastically, but subtle, before taking a look at the cut. "That's quite deep. Perhaps Madam…"

"I said it's nothing." Draco insisted as he tried to pull his hand back, but Cho had a good hold on it.

"Will you hold still? I'll just clear up that dried blood." She ordered. Taking her wand, she quickly pointed it towards the cut and carefully spelled out, "Tergeo." The dried blood soon dissolved, giving way for the wound to breathe. "There…just go and ask the hospital wing to give you something to close the wound and a bandage." Cho added.

Furrowing his brows at the Raven, he simply turned his back to her and walked out.

'_And he tells me I have bad manners…' _Cho thought to herself before following him out.

—

7:00 AMs were always terrible for Draco. If there was one spell he could invent, he would invent the spell that allowed you to move the sun around and the moon back in its place. Dreading the day, Draco lazily got ready for breakfast.

The Great Hall, like always, was full of conversing students who, Draco marveled at for being up and about this early. "Morning…" Goyle greeted as Draco sat next to him for breakfast.

"Morning." Draco replied as he grabbed a hold of his cup and took a sip of his pumpkin juice. Soon, owls came flooding in as they delivered packages to their respective recipients. Grabbing a hold of the daily prophet near him, Draco began reading the daily news only to have himself _choked _by an excited Pansy.

"THANK YOU! Draco! You're so sweet! I can't beli-"

Pansy couldn't even finish her sentence since Draco was quick enough to cover her mouth. "Will you keep it down?" He whispered. A few of the students in their table quickly turned their eyes on the two; some were chuckling and giggling to themselves.

Pansy quickly pushed his hand away and began to speak. "They're just lovely. Thank you!" Delighted with her flowers and sweets, she, without thinking, bent down and kissed Draco on the cheek.

A flustered Draco, wide eyed, stood up and exited the room without another word. Cho, who was watching all of this, simply smiled to herself before turning her gaze to Marietta, who was enjoying the little show that Pansy and Draco were putting on. "I can't believe there's a romantic bone in that boy's body." Marietta commented as she took a bite of her bread.

"It's nice of him to do that for her." Cho replied as she slowly bit into her crumpet. Not paying attention, her owl quickly swooped down and dropped a stemmed white rose in front of her. To Cho's surprise—and to everyone sitting around her—she curiously picked it up. "Huh?" She asked.

Marietta giggled to herself as she playfully nudged Cho. "Look at you and that know-it-all squealer receiving flowers so casually." She teased.

"But…I-…" Cho muttered, before quickly fixing her eyes on Harry, who seemed to be enjoying a casual conversation with Hermione. "I'll ask him later." Cho added, before taking another bite of her crumpet.

—

Draco walked out of the Great Hall embarrassed. He hated how girls needed to make a big deal out of everything. There was only one person who he thought didn't really share much of her emotions to the public, well not that he could really attest to it. Glancing at his bandaged hand, he decided to make his way to his first class, before the halls were flooded with students. Passing through the quad, he spotted the few rose bushes that were in full bloom. Stopping for a second to "_smell the roses"_, he sneakily plucked a rose and stared at it for a quick second before racing his way inside the castle.

Not a moment too soon, the students began to start their first class of the day.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:**

Another chapter! I didn't expect this to be a long one. Hehe

Oh, and I'm currently obsessed with Adele's Chasing Pavements. Seriously, that's song is so awesome :)

_**Media**__:_ I'm glad you like it! Love that you commented! Thanks for reading and hope to hear from you again!

_**fanfic reader:**_ Thanks for the compliment! For some reason, lord of the rings was going through my mind when I was writing that part (forest) haha. Hope to hear from you again!

Everyone, thanks for reading! Hate it or love it, comment on it!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

"The wand must be pointed at the angle to where the handler's foot is pointed to. The…" professor Flitwick pointed out as he stepped off his stool to walk around the class, demonstrating.

"Seriously Ronald." Hermione, irritated, nudged a drooling boy next to her as she paid close attention to the professor's words.

"What? Huh? The bird!" He shouted, causing the whole class to completely stare at the boy.

"Brilliant!" Hermione muttered to herself as she listened and watched the whole class laugh.

Charms was the last class before lunch. Thank goodness for Ron, he didn't have to deal with the embarrassment till after lunch. "I've made a complete mock of myself. Thanks a lot Hermione!" Ron hissed.

Harry simply shook his head and stifled a chuckle, while Hermione, completely surprised, turned her gaze at Ron. "Well, you're _quite_ welcome Ronald. Don't bother asking me for notes when we have a pop quiz on how to manage to fall asleep and shout random gibberish when woken up!" Hermione mocked before walking off

"You should go after her before this gets off hand." Harry suggested as he watched a slightly _enraged _Hermione walking off.

"Perhaps you're right. Women! They always take things the wrong way." Ron commented before running off after Hermione.

Harry simply grinned before walking the opposite direction. He wasn't particularly hungry and simply decided that he'd spend his time in the library to catch up on work. Momentarily, a particular someone had caught up to him. "Harry…" Cho spoke as she approached him.

Harry quickly turned around upon hearing Cho's voice. "Cho! Hey. It's been ages. It's like I haven't seen you in forever!" Harry greeted.

Cho simply smiled weakly. For a couple, the two did not really spend THAT much of a time together. Keeping her brown hues on the boy, she held tight onto her book. "I wanted to ask you something, if that's okay."

"Of course! Oh, which reminds me, I wanted to ask you about Draco? What happened? I followed you an—"

"Everything's fine. Just don't think about it." Cho quickly cut in as she stepped a little closer. "That's not why I approached you. I-I…I just wanted to thank you for the rose." She said, smiling sweetly.

Harry simply blinked. He blinked again. "What rose?" He asked a little confused.

Cho was starting to be a little confused herself. "This rose." She said as she pulled out the white-stemmed beauty she received that morning. "Didn't you give this to me?"

"I didn't send that." Harry replied as he looked, intuitively, at Cho's expression. Seeing the little disappointment on Cho's face, he added a "sorry."

Cho returned another one of her rather weak smiles before replying, "it's fine." As a matter of fact she was _beyond great._ Sarcasm intended. Yes, the rose flattered her but seeing that it did not come from her boyfriend, slightly disappointed her. "Well, that's all I wanted to ask you. I Guess I should be—"

"Wait…" Harry said as he gently grabbed Cho by the arm. "Do you mind walking with me?" He asked

Cho glanced at her book, to the few Gryffindors that walked by, then back to Harry. "I-I…ah..I mean yes…NO! Ah I mean, No, I don't mind." She muttered in reply.

—

Draco was walking towards the Great Hall for lunch, when two familiar people had stopped him in his tracks. He managed to keep his distance as his eyes shifted from Harry to Cho. He couldn't quite put a finger as to what irritated him upon seeing Harry and Cho together, but he certainly could interpret how much of an eyesore Potter was to him. Keeping his cold stare at the two bodies, his thoughts soon break as a hand carelessly slapped hard on his shoulder.

"Oi! Aren't you too much of a creep to be staring at Potter and his girl like this?" Blaise asked chuckling quietly as his eyes followed Draco's gaze. "What's happening anyway?" Draco simply shrugged Blaise's hand off and began to pace onward. He didn't feel like eating so he took it in his own accord to simply spend his time elsewhere. Blaise, confused, blinked as he followed Draco. "Ey! Where are you going?"

"I'm skipping lunch. I'm not hungry" was Draco's honest answer before disappearing behind a corner. Finding a quiet set of stairs to dwell in his own thoughts, Draco indulged himself with his new found past time—translating something he shouldn't even be reading in the first place. Slipping the familiar journal out of his bag and opening to the page he had marked, his eyes began working like clockwork as they moved from character to character. Mumbling things to himself as he scribbled away, he was oblivious to the cold walls that surrounded him.

—

Cho, for some reason, wasn't in the cheeriest of all moods. For once she was finally spending a little time with Harry, but walking with your boyfriend to the library wasn't her ideal plan of _catching up_. "Cho?" Harry questioned the girl's blank stare.

Blinking, she quickly formulated a response. "I'm going to go and check on something before lunch ends. I'll meet up with you before dinner."

Standing outside the library, Harry simply nodded back to his girlfriend. "Well, we have a _meeting_ later. Will you be able to attend?" He asked in a hushed tone.

Cho had completely forgotten about the _meeting._ "Ah..yes, maybe. I have to catch up on homework, but I probably can. I'll see you then. Bye Harry." Cho replied, before leaning in to give Harry a subtle peck on the cheek, which profusely made the boy's cheeks burn bright, red. Cho waited till Harry had entered the library before walking the opposite direction She wasn't hungry, neither was she backed up with homework that everyone seems to be cramming to finish. The girl allowed her feet to take control while she tried to think of anyone who might've given her the rose. Stranded in her own curiosity, Cho was not aware that she was beginning to descend a flight of steps. Without a moment further, a voice had stopped her from taking a step further.

"Hey Cho." A deep voice greeted from behind her.

Cho immediately turned around and found herself looking up to a lowerclassmen who was wearing the same blue, oriented, robes. "Yes?"

The student simply grinned as he took a step closer towards Cho. Cho knew most of the people in her house, but didn't really get acquainted with those below her year. "Where are you going?" He asked. His crystalline blues looked curiously back at her brown ones.

Cho simply arched a brow. For one thing, she did not know this boy and to have him ask a simple, yet personal question like _'Where are you going?'_ was just odd. "Excuse me?"

"The rose, I suppose you liked it? It reminded me of you." The boy simply replied.

If he didn't spit out the very definition of creepy, I don't know _what_ else could've. Cho simply blinked. "Excuse me? Y-You? Ah…you were the one who sent me this?" Cho asked as she raised the rose.

The boy took another step closer, which immediately urged Cho to take a step back. "Yeah. Liked it?" He asked once more.

"I-I..well…. I—"

Before Cho could finish, another voice had joined the conversation. "If she was interested, she would've said she liked it. Are you that stupid to seriously understand that mate?" Draco interrupted.

Cho blinked repeatedly as she felt Draco's ego and more so, his presence emanate close by. If she could only have one day to which she didn't seem to _magically_ be in the same room as Draco, she'd definitely be MORE THAN thankful. Looking up at the boy that seemed to be frightened by Draco's sudden appearance, Cho could only muster a polite nod. "I did. That was ver—"

But before the boy could hear what Cho had to say, the poor student simply made a run for it. A laughing Draco was the only _thing_ left that stood in the same vicinity as her. "That was ridiculous! My life would never be complete without them; I couldn't be more amused. Your taste for stupider men has gotten worse Chang. What a shame" Draco spoke, amused.

Cho simply sighed to herself before clipping the rose between the pages of her leather bound textbook. "If I recalled, he's not the only who sent flowers out, today. Isn't that right Mr. Malfoy?" Cho asked, returning the smirk plastered on the bloke's lips. Not even patient to wait for a reply, or better yet, before something horrible was to happen again, Cho quickly managed to walk past Draco. However, before someone could muster the words _peanut butter_, Draco had already grabbed a hold of her arm—something that happened quite a lot when she was in his _humble _company.

"What did you say?" Draco asked, pulling Cho closer to him.

Cho, not wanting to fall on a set of cold stone steps, managed to keep her balance as the boy, bewilderingly, yanked her closer. "Nothing…I was just saying, that before I do something _stupid_, it's best that I be on my way." Cho replied sarcastically, yet subtly.

"Did you tell Potter what happened?" Draco asked out of the blue. For one thing, he didn't give a damn as to whether Potter knew about what had happened during the weekend, but Cho's calm and passive responses always irritated him. It wasn't the kind of response he wanted.

Cho looked up at his face. His grip, like always, was tightening and Cho could've sworn that the last time he did that purple marks had appeared. "No. Don't worry. I haven't told anyone." She replied calmly.

"You better not have." Draco responded sternly as he pushed Cho off-quite the dumbest idea. The slippery steps were unavoidable as Cho quickly lost her footing. It was either fall on her bum or head and get hurt OR hold onto Draco hoping he was a good enough support (for the mean time) as she struggled to keep her balance. To her dismay, and to Draco's, Cho had grabbed onto his tie, a force good enough to lead him to spontaneously grab a hold of Cho by the waist, following her fall. The two landed on the floor immaculately as Cho rested her slender frame comfortably on top of Draco, who at this point, had both his hands on the girl's waist. Likewise, Cho's hands had a gentle press on the boy's chest.

The bird nestled with the snake; embarrassed stares locked the two immediately.

Cho blinked profusely as she tried to process what had happened and whom it happened with. She couldn't help but dissect what she was looking at, with her eyes of course. He was after all, to her, comparable to that of a specimen. Noting how strangely attractive his eyes were—hues of light blue mixed with grey—, how seemingly soft and pale his skin was, and how subtle his hair fell down to his face, Cho couldn't help but think that Draco had the potential to be a good looking child. Of course, this was just an observation from distinct evidences that she had the privilege of pointing out to herself; she meant the obvious facts to girls and guys in Hogwarts. Her hands pressed down further onto his chest and Cho could feel the hard and probably toned pectorals that were hidden underneath the cloth they called _"clothes."_

Draco, on the other hand, was just as observant as Cho or even better. He noticed how tantalizing Cho's brown eyes really were and how good her hair smelled. Heck, she smelled better than most of the women he interacts with. Her scent was definitely alluring. Even Pansy, who sprays Merlin knows what on herself, didn't smell _that_ good. He felt the even dip on both sides of her waist and knew that the girl was definitely in shape, something that he often looked at in women, not that he was obsessed with women who are thin. His eyes traveled down her face and paused for a second to stare at her lips. They were red and seemed quite tempting to the weak. To top it off, her button down blouse gave him a good view of something Zabini would willingly be hexed for just to get a feel of, to which he thought, _'no wonder Potter likes you'_

It took the two a span of minutes to realize that they were in a rather tight and _too close_ of a situation. Quickly and very awkwardly, Draco pushed Cho off. The sight of her Merlin given gifts had distracted him far too much. "Get off me." He muttered embarrassed and annoyed.

Cho pushed herself off as soon as Draco had given that initial shove. _'HOW EMBARRASSING!'_ she thought to herself while she stirred around to collect her belongings on the floor. She didn't have the nerve and face to say anything knowing that her flushed cheeks had more things to say than that of a dictionary.

Draco gulped silently as he loosened his tie and stood up. "Can you get anymore clumsier?" He muttered irritated as he took a step towards the corner he had been sitting on prior. Unaware, he accidently took a step too soon before Cho could reach for the white stemmed rose. CRUNCH! Was what the two heard as Cho, a little bit saddened, stared at the distorted rose on the floor. "Damnit…" he muttered.

"Sorry…" Cho simply muttered after picking up after herself and before leaving the premise.

—

Draco's mind was elsewhere throughout the whole afternoon and found it irritating that several professors were calling him out for it. Annoyed, he quietly walked to the commons and stayed in the dorms till dinner. "If I have to read another ridiculous chapter on maggots, I'm going to hex myself." He muttered as he pushed his Herbology textbook aside. Pulling something he _enjoyed more_ than maggots, Draco began the monotonous scribbles; he was also getting better at it. An hour or so, more pages were translated.

_Qiu,_

_I remember vividly how you loved roses. White, to be exact. You'd lace them around your hair and call out, "Look at me Papa." When you visit, they'll be in full bloom. Perhaps, we could pick a few for you Mama._

_Z.L._

-Another page read-

_470 _

_145_

_134_

_548_

_432_

_341_

_394_

-While another wrote—

_She likes butterflies…_

Draco, after reading what he had translated, wanted to bloody well throw the journal out the window, but he didn't. He was curious, but how long can something like this entice him. He was getting tired with the broken riddles that were hidden inside the words he worked hard to translate. "Rubbish…" He muttered to himself as he shoved his things aside and rummaged further inside his book bag only to be pricked by the rose he had plucked off the bush earlier. "Ah…!" He hissed before sucking lightly on his pricked finger. Eyes quickly fixating on the beautiful thing, his mind traced back to that afternoon's events—back to Cho. He was a guy, of course, and he enjoyed what he saw, but it mildly disgusted him to think of someone like that who associated with that wonder boy wizard that everyone glorified. Folding his arms behind his head, his thoughts were in a daze as images of Cho lying on top of him danced around his mind.

"THE BLOODY HELL?" He quickly spitted out as he caught himself thinking of her. "They're just breasts, everyone has them Draco." He reassured himself before standing up to make his way to the great hall. Perhaps food could distract him.

—

Cho, before dinner, was in a little trance herself. It's as if that embarrassing incident with Draco completely pulled her mind from earth and kept it hidden somewhere far beyond Hogwarts. She, like Draco, failed to respond to the questions asked in class as well as those asked by her fellow students. And during the D.A. meeting, she was just out of it. However, the site of Harry and Hermione giggling away in a corner managed to get her mind back in its cavern. After a somewhat successful lesson with Harry and the rest of the group, Cho and Marietta marched quietly back to their commons. "Cho, what's on your mind?" Marietta boldly asked.

Blinking—something Cho was quite accustomed to—she replied, "nothing…just homework." This was always a safe response.

Marietta, like a few of the ravens in Hogwarts, was wittier than what most would acknowledge her for. "Ahaha…right Cho. You see, I know the 'I'm stressing over homework Cho.' This Cho seems like the 'I'm so confused between two things Cho'."

Afraid that Marietta would pry further, she quickly changed the subject. "I know who sent me that rose."

"Who?" Marietta asked excited. "Harry, right? I mean he—"

"No…"Cho replied. A slight melancholic tone swirled in her reply before adding, "it was a lowerclassmen. Probably just did it for fun and games."

Marietta simply rolled her eyes and smirked. "Fun and games huh? Tell me that when those secret admirers of yours stop pestering me with their, 'is Harry and Cho still dating' questions."

Smiling weakly, Cho shook her head and acknowledged a few ravens before slipping in the dorms with Marietta. "I mean, Harry is a great guy but—"

"—but he's no Cedric." Marietta carelessly interrupted. "Bollocks! Cho, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. I mean, it just comes out of my mouth naturally and I—"

"It's fine Marietta. No offense taken." Cho kindly replied. She could never find anyone who could _be_ Cedric. Cedric will always be in her heart no matter what. Harry, on the other hand, confused her. She didn't know if he's that sincere to actually work with her through their relationship. But it seems that she's just simply succumbing to the pressure of having a relationship with him—the man who brought her closer to Cedric. Did she really like him for who he is, or is she just using him to seal that hole that Cedric had left open and scarred when he died. But Cho found something awfully and painfully strange. Besides Cedric, who kept Cho daydreaming from head to toe, there was another boy who seemed to linger in her mind just recently…very recent. The fact that it wasn't Harry, disturbed her.

"Seriously Cho, what's going on? I haven't seen you this confused since Cedr—I mean let's go to dinner. I'll wait for you down by the commons." Marietta quickly corrected herself and rushed out of the dormitory afraid that she'd completely upset Cho.

Cho simply smiled weakly, like always. People over expressed and misinterpreted her fragility sometimes, which bothered Cho a little, but it was nothing to get hung up on. Giving herself a last look on the mirror, she couldn't help but smile a little as she stared back at her reflection. Curious enough, it wasn't her reflection she was smiling at.

The Great Hall was filled with chatter in every corner. Excited students shared their wants and frustrations away as they ate. Draco was not one of them. He was quiet and kept to himself while his eyes glanced, from time to time, at Cho. Letting out a sigh of frustration, he quickly took a swig of his pumpkin juice. "You okay there, mate?" Zabini asked, as he seemed to enjoy winking flirtatiously at some Hufflepuff nearby.

"Yeah…" Draco grumbled as he tried to focus his attention on his plate. "About that Herbology homework, whom are you partnering with?" He added, hoping that a conversation would sway his thoughts from her.

"I was hoping that badger would show me some of her partnering skills." Zabini replied enthusiastically.

As disgusting and disturbing as that sounded, Draco was more than used to it. Taking a bite of his bread, his eyes couldn't help but quickly glance at Cho once more, who seemed to be less than enthusiastic in her own conversation. "I'm done. I'll see you back at the dorms." Draco spoke as he stood up and walked out of the Great Hall.

Cho was having the same degree of difficulty on focusing that night. Whatever Marietta said passed through one ear and exited the other. Then again, the sight of Harry and Hermione giggling away always made her snap back to reality. Jealousy was a vile little thing, to which Cho was rarely accustomed. Not in the mood to get high and hung up on Harry and Hermione's _flirting_, Cho took the liberty of excusing herself for the rest of the night. The halls were quiet as she walked to the Ravenclaw tower. Passing through the quad, to her surprise, someone other than herself was not in a gluttonous rave. As soon as the person's figure appeared visible to her two brown eyes, she couldn't help but hate the timing of EVERYTHING that day. Hoping that Draco had not noticed her, she slowly retraced her steps only to find his egotistical voice calling her out. "Obsession is a sin Chang. Perhaps Potter wouldn't appreciate you stalking me."

Cho ducked her head down wishing that the rose bush could somehow hide her shame and body. A failing idea to begin with, she immediately stepped out from behind the bushes and coughed a response. "I was just on my way to the commons, but now that I think about it, I'm still hungry. Ah..bye." Curious if she could make a run for it, she abruptly turned around causing her to crash slightly into a bush. "Oww…that hurts.." She muttered to herself before trying to maneuver her way around the damn plant. Sadly and most unfortunate, she was stuck. _'Really now…Seriously? Just bloody brilliant Cho!'_ She thought to herself as she struggled to unhook herself from the bush.

Draco raised a brow and simply shook his head. He didn't know if Cho did this on purpose or was she just blatantly careless. _'This girl will get herself killed one day'_ He thought to himself as he walked closer. "You're quite the _smart one_, aren't you?" He mocked.

"What can I say…I love roses too much." Cho mumbled to herself as she struggled further.

"Do you have to have someone do everything for you? I don't know why Potter keeps you around." He mocked even further as he tugged hard on Cho's sweater causing it to rip free from the stuck piece inside the bush. To Cho's dilemma, not only was Cho's sweater in quite an awful condition, but also, it seemed something else was struggling.

"Butterfly!" Cho gasped as she edged closer to the bush and tried to tease the butterfly onto her palm. "I think I killed it…" The frown on her face showed her deep concern for the little thing.

"It's just a damn butterfly! No need to get your knickers in a twist." He commented uninterested with Cho's discovery as he stepped away. He was about to walk away, but he simply waited and watched Cho from behind her.

"I'm so sorry….hao ba ne (Are you alright?) ?" Cho whispered before laying the butterfly on top of a rose. Not really caring as to what Draco had to say, she turned to him after and simply said. "I'm going to go now, thanks for…ah…your help." Cho's weak smile radiated from her lips before she turned around and made her way inside the castle.

Draco watched silently as Cho walked back in the castle. His mind told him to retort another one of his rude commentaries, but his gut, for some reason, urged him to remain silent.

—

_She likes butterflies…White roses to be exact._


	6. Chapter 6

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Oh wow! It has been ages! For this, I truthfully apologize. I had summer school, and finally the term is over and summer is here (for a month)! I can update often now...hopefully.

_**Juliet: **_Cho is very clumsy, but she manages to get herself out of it, a ok. And yes, Draco is finally getting there. Him and his noggin' haha. Thanks for commenting! Hope to hear from you again!

**_fanfic reader:_** Cho loves butterflies a lot (Well the Cho in my imagination that is). Thanks for commenting! Hope to hear from you again!

**_Sango's Counterpart:_** All I can say is WOW! Thank you very much for those insightful and wonderful comments. I honestly didn't think that this story would work out, since the ship is less than likely to happen. Haha, but thanks to those who continuously read that I find inspiration in continuing this story. I'm glad you find that I do justice to these characters. I honestly try to stay true to their origins, since that is the actual test of writing a fanfiction (for me that is). I'd love it if Malfoy was a debonair zorro, but he isn't and so weaving his personality in with Cho is the biggest challenge ever and I love it! And yes, I will definitely try to be more creative on how Cho and Draco stumble upon each other, since the whole clumsy do-over, get's a little boring. I honestly love Pansy. There's a lot of potential in her, but I think she throws that out the window, because of Draco (this is my interpretation of her character). Blaise/Pansy has potential too, but I will up front and say that they will not happen in this story, since I don't want so much "lovers" in this story besides the focal ship :) I enjoyed reading your reviews and I hope to hear from you soon!

Everyone (silent readers and non-silent), thanks for reading! I do appreciate the support!

Hate it or love it, comment on it!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

* * *

Have you ever felt that everything would turn out right the moment you woke up? Well, that's how Cho felt. The moment she sat abrupt on her mattress, she knew that today, was THE day. As for what THE could stand for, was another story.

"You seem happy." Marietta grouchily _greeted_ as she poorly attempted to make her bed.

"Oh…Good morning!" Cho replied enthusiastically.

The two—well one—eagerly dressed up for school, while the other, less than enthusiastic did so. Cho straightened her tie and skirt as she walked out of the Great Hall with Marietta. "You're strange." Marietta commented as she watched her friend's _strange_ actions.

"What's so strange about trying to look clean in the morning?" Cho asked with that odd sing-song tune in her voice, making Marietta raise a brow. "I just feel rather pleasant today." She added.

The halls began to flood with students of different houses, each with their own respective schedule to follow. Marietta waved goodbye as they parted ways, ready to start their day. Cho dodged a few running first-years as she made her way down a few staircases. Before she could take a few more steps, a familiar voice had stopped her. Turning, she saw Harry dashing towards her. "Ha—" She stopped mid-word as soon as Harry caught her off guard with an embrace. "Harry, is there something wrong?" She asked after Harry had released her.

Harry simply shook his head and smiled weakly. "I was on my way to the dungeons, but I saw you and had to say hello." He added. "Good morning, by the way."

Cho couldn't help but blush. _This is definitely a first._ She thought to herself as she looked down at her shoes smiling awkwardly before meeting Harry's alluring green orbs. "Good morning to you too." She replied sweetly and appreciative of Harry's sweet gesture—something she rarely expected from him.

"Well I have to be off now. I'll meet you for lunch?" Harry asked as he pushed his glasses up his nose.

Cho simply nodded and waved a goodbye. "See you later!"

Harry smiled and waved in return. Not long enough, that smile had quickly frolicked off his lips as soon as an "unwanted" soul emerged from behind. "I almost vomited my breakfast, no thanks to you Potter." Draco loudly commented from behind.

Harry stopped and looked at Draco with a raised brow. "Perhaps seeing something appalling had elicited that urge." Harry replied, while he gestured towards Pansy, who was busy pushing Crabbe out of her way to walk closely next to Draco. "You should eat less in the morning, is the advice I'd give you." He added, before running towards Ron and Hermione, who were a few feet ahead.

"You think you're so—" Draco couldn't even finish his retort since Harry was already far ahead. Turning to Pansy, who was trying to wrap an arm around his, he immediately walked faster, making the girl irritated as always. "Hurry up, we're going to be late for class." He said, pulling his arm away from her.

In class, the Slytherins, like always, clumped together in one end of the room, while the rest sat in the other. This happened most especially in Potions. Severus, unannounced as usual, simply stormed inside the classroom and began class.

"Did you finish Umbridge's ridiculous homework?" Ron whispered as he handed Harry the rat-tail.

Harry shook his head while continuing to stir the cauldron. Adding the rat-tail to the concoction, he gestured towards Hermione. "She's not even close to finishing that ridiculous assignment."

Ron simply snickered and added a few arch mosses to the brew. Hermione, who wasn't standing too far from the two, had heard the ongoing conversation. Turning around, she whispered, "I think we should hold off the next…" she paused and looked around to make sure that no one was listening. "….meeting till Friday. We need to finish Umbridge's homework, or else she'll start badgering us with Merlin knows what." She finished.

Harry continued to stir. "But half of the group can't even conjure a proper patro—" He quickly cut himself off as soon as Severus began checking up on their row.

"Mr. Potter, if you're trying to brew a pig sty, you might as well step out of my class and do it in the toilet." He commented as he took a peek at Harry's and Ron's attempt of a brew.

Harry remained silent and continued with his statement as soon as Severus was far from earshot. "Half the group can't even conjure a proper patronus. We can't stop now."

Hermione, being the obsessive-compulsive creature that she is, stepped in between the two boys and quickly remedied their brew. "Ronald, do you honestly think that putting these in here would make it better." She hissed as she grabbed the stirrer from Harry and stirred the cauldron herself. "Just add three tablespoons of bat clippings and that will do the trick." She added, before handing the stirrer to Ron. "Anyway, I still say we hold off _**A**_ meeting Harry." She finished before joining her partner.

Draco, on the other hand, couldn't hear the trio's conversation, but was definitely keeping a close watch on the three. "I wonder what they're talking about." He muttered to himself.

"Is this supposed to look like this?" Blaise asked, pointing out the color of their brew.

"Add more bat clippings. That'll do the trick." Draco replied, before returning his eyes on the three.

"Do you like Chriselda?" Blaise asked, gesturing towards Hermione's partner.

Draco gave Blaise a quizzical look and shook his head, before mouthing a stern NO! As sad as one would think, to Blaise, the world consisted of only two important things—Girls and hotter girls. Potions ended fifteen minutes early as expected. Like usual, there were a few mishaps but no serious injury.

On the other side of the castle, something else was stirring up…

"DEAR MERLIN! I HAVE TOLD YOU TWO TO STAY AWAY FROM THAT PLANT!" Professor Sprout scolded as she helped one of her students from being gobbled up by a man-eating plant, while the other student watched as his partner was being gobbled up by a plant. Cho flinched as her classmate struggled, but fortunately, managed to get out of it with only a few treatable wounds. "I'll bring Mr. Gibbins to the hospital wing, the rest of you continue on with your project. Ms. Chang, please watch the class for me while I'm gone." The professor added as she helped the student out of the greenhouse.

Cho simply nodded to the professor's order, before directing her attention to the immobile blood-sucking plant in front of her. "This is the vita pulmonary organia." She pointed out to her partner as she sliced through a balloon looking 'organ' on the plant.

"So how does it feel like dating the wonder boy?" Cho's partner rudely asked as she wrote down, and misspelled, what Cho pointed out on the plant.

Cho, caught off guard, simply replied. "It feels wonderful."

Here's the thing. Cho wasn't completely head over heels towards the boy, but when people ask her how she felt regards to dating Harry, she felt that it was her obligation to tell them what they would expect—that Harry was a wonderful guy. Sure Harry was a charming boy, but she honestly found him a tad bit dull at times. Although, he sure did have his unexpected moments, to which Cho was mildly thankful for. Slicing another vital organ on the plant, Cho was asked another question, "have you guys shagged?" to which Cho had uncannily dropped her scalpel. Her partner simply chuckled at Cho's reaction. "Does he have a big todg—"

"Mildred! Please! Can we focus on finishing this?" Cho, irritated, hissed.

Mildred simply rolled her eyes and yawned as she twirled her quill between her fingers. "Fine..fine…aren't you the boring one." She mumbled in reply.

To Cho's relief, the class soon ended. _I've never felt so violated!_ She thought to herself as she ran towards the castle, to where she would go to her next class. Up the staircases, and through the busy hallways, Cho managed to grab a seat in front of her next class. Charms was one of her favorite classes, not to mention the other nine favorite subjects she was taking that term. To her utmost surprise, someone familiar decided to sit next to her. Eyes wide and mouth slightly agape, she continued to stare at him as he sat next to her.

Draco hissed to himself as he saw the room quickly fill up. Spotting an open seat, he couldn't help but stop mid-track as he noticed the girl he would be potentially sitting next to. He didn't understand if this was some misconstrued fate or a simple bad case of Karma that he had to bump with her…AGAIN. Finding no other option, he reluctantly sat next to her. Turning around to catch her staring at him, Draco couldn't stop that urge of pointing something out. "Didn't you know it's rude to stare Chang?"

Cho quickly snapped out of her unbelievable reverie, before realizing that the snake had began to hiss. "I was simply shocked that you're in an upper division Charms class." She added politely.

Draco simply smirked as he, unenthusiastically, slammed his book on the table. "Don't be surprised if someone else is smarter than you." He replied, before flipping through his book. "I'm surprised you're not in a higher level Charms class." He added amusingly.

Draco was unwilling to be transferred to a higher-level Charms class to begin with. He wanted to remain with his friends, even if he was bored in that class all the time. However, Professor McGonagall had better plans for the boy and immediately transferred him without further notice.

The class moved painless as possibly. Cho and Draco didn't interact much besides having to partner up in between lecture. As soon as the professor ended, Cho heaved a relief as she quickly stood up, only to find the whole class standing up with her. Irritated that she had to wait for the rest of her classmates to leave, she simply stayed put, till everyone had left. Draco did the same.

"Oh Mr. Malfoy, Ms. Chang! I was observing you both. I'd like to congratulate you two. Good hold on today's lesson! You two definitely applied it well." Professor Flitwick complimented as he hopped off his stool and moved closer to the two.

Cho simply smiled and Draco, as usual, was unenthused and simply nodded. The classroom was beginning to empty, while next class' students slowly moved inside the room. Cho had almost reached the halls, when an unconscious student clumsily ran into Draco, who was following closely behind. Terrified, the lower classman quickly got on her knees and picked up Draco's belongings. "I'm so sorry! Really! Sorry!" She apologized profusely as she gathered Draco's quills in one hand, while the other tried to gather his parchments.

Draco growled as he tossed his opened bag to the ground. "Watch where you're going next time badger!" He hissed as he pointed towards his bag, gesturing that she should put his belongings in it.

Cho couldn't help but turn and watch all of this. She was disgusted with Draco's insensitive actions; then again, it was common for him to act that way. On the other hand, while all of this was happening, something caught her eye. Not even giving it a second thought, she quickly grabbed what she thought was hers from the pile on the ground. "What is this?" Cho asked, as she held the journal up.

Draco blinked as he saw what Cho was holding up. _Bollocks!_ He thought to himself as he rudely grabbed his bag from the badger, who was still apologizing profusely. "What do you think it is? You have eyes Chang….cle—" Cho quickly turned around and headed towards the hallway. She didn't know, but her eyes began to well up. The journal in her hand was a part of her life; she couldn't believe that Draco had it all along. Thoughts crashed in her head as she cradled the old thing tightly. "CHANG!" Draco hissed as he quickly grabbed her by the arm.

Cho looked up at Draco with tears starting to flow down her cheeks, making Draco release his grip. "You had it all along. How could you? Did you read it? Why did you keep it? Why.."

Draco, surprised, didn't realize that this thing could make someone THIS upset. It was just a bloody journal for goodness sakes. "Merlins Chang, it's just an old, smelly…"

"No! It's not! You're just a stupid boy who doesn't know anything!" She retorted, before running the opposite direction, leaving a heavily confused Draco behind.

Cho ran far away as she could until she heard nothing but her footsteps. Clutching the old thing close, she ran up a stairwell and sat close to a huge window, where she found solace in her own tears. Crying as she scanned through the pages, she stopped at a particular page and couldn't help but cry even more.

—

It was past five, and Cho had been staring at the same tree, out the window, for a few hours now. It didn't dawn to her that she had missed lunch, and the rest of her classes that day. She wanted time to stop for just a while, but sadly, that happening, is not in her favor.

Harry, who happened to be coming from one of his classes, noticed a familiar figure sitting by the window. "Where have you been? I was waiting for you during lunch, but you never showed up." Harry asked as he stepped closer to Cho.

Cho, who felt like a mess, simply turned her bulged up eyes to look at Harry and answered softly, "I was at the library, studying. Sorry about that."

Harry, who wasn't THAT oblivious to everything, asked in concern while looking at Cho's distraught face. "Have you been crying? Are you okay?" Harry asked as he softly pulled Cho closer to him. "Did someone do you wrong?" He added.

Cho didn't mutter a word. Right now, she didn't really care. She knew that at some point, she'd just break her wall and cry once more. After all, that's what most students thought of her, a crybaby. Lacing both arms around Harry, she softly cried, while Harry comforted her.

"Harry! I—" Hermione stopped mid-sentence upon seeing that Harry wasn't alone. "Oh, I'm so sorry."

Harry quickly pulled back from the embrace and turned to see who had called his name. "Hey Hermione. I was just about to meet up with you. I'll be there in a second." He replied. Hermione nodded and walked off. Cho, irritated with the fact that Hermione had to interrupt the little time she had with Harry, quickly stood up and grabbed her things. "Wait, where are you going?" Harry asked confused.

"Don't you have to meet up with Hermione? Go! _I_ don't want _you _to keep her waiting!" Cho bitterly replied.

"What's this all about Cho?" Harry asked as he took a step closer.

Cho couldn't help but feel those suckers coming out of her already bulged eyes. "You're asking me what this is all about? Oh, I don't know Harry. Last time I checked, I was the girlfriend here, not Hermione! Why does she have to be in the picture all the time? I understand that she's you're friend, but sometimes…sometimes I feel like you're dating her and not me." Cho replied, feeling slightly relieved that she had finally expressed these feelings about Harry and Hermione's closeness.

Harry was shocked. "I'm sorry if you feel this way, but Hermione is only a friend. Cho, it's not a huge thing to get worked up on. Don't cry about it."

"Excuse me for trying to communicate what I'm feeling to you! I've had it with you trying to defend her. If you want to date her, all you had to do was break-up with me! And for the record, I'll cry if I want to. It's my life Harry, and you don't have a say in it! Like my feelings care at this point to you." Cho exclaimed before running down the stairs.

Harry parted his mouth, ready to say a piece of his mind, but chose not to as he watched Cho disappear from sight.

—

"I want to baby, but I—" Blaise began as he tried to smooth talk a housemate into doing his homework.

"If I were you Bloomsworth, I'd walk away now." Pansy interrupted as she walked in on Blaise's poor attempt of seducing the snake.

Blaise, mouth agaped, watched as Carlotta Bloomsworth walked away. His glaring orbs shifted to Pansy, who situated herself comfortably on a couch. "What's your problem?" He asked Pansy.

"You." Pansy retorted as she reached for her book bag and grabbed a chocolate frog from the inside. "Have you seen Draco?" She asked.

Blaise threw himself on the couch and leaned back. Chuckling, he replied, "I thought you'd know. After all, it's not like you stalk him all the time."

To that, Pansy quickly threw a pillow towards him as her reply. Seconds later, the topic of their conversation was slowly pacing towards them. "Draco! Where have you been? Blaise over here was wondering where you were." Pansy greeted.

"Yeah, cause I'm the one who's obsessing over you all the time….rrright.." Blaise added.

Another pillow was chucked towards the sarcastic snake, to which Draco simply raised a brow. "I had to talk to McGonagall." Draco answered as he sat next to Pansy, to which Blaise found as a surprise.

Pansy crept closer and attempted to cuddle next to Draco, but Draco, on the other hand wasn't as receptive as always. "Oh geebuz, what did that old bat want?" She asked.

"Nothing." Draco replied as he leaned back. The day couldn't end sooner as he reflected on that day's events. Everything was clear, except what had happened during Charms. _I wonder if she's still crying? Wait, who cares Draco, it's not like you do._ He thought as he half-listened to the yapping Pansy next to him. Not saying another word, he quickly stood up.

"Where are you going?" Blaise asked, while Pansy looked at Draco, awfully confused.

"A walk. Go to dinner without me. I'm not hungry anyway." He replied as he exited the commons.

Pansy pouted and threw another pillow towards Blaise, who finally caught it this time. "What was that for?"

"Oh just shut up!" Pansy grumbled as she watched Draco leave.

The quiet halls were rather eerie for Draco, but somehow, he found them a little bit comforting. It's as if dark, quiet halls were the only things that didn't seem too rushed and fast paced in his life. Making his way towards the owlery, he didn't expect to see the very person that clouded his mind at that moment. "Are you following me? Seriously Chang, you have to stop" He commented, like always.

Cho, who didn't feel like eating or talking, decided to find refuge in the highest point of the castle. If possible, she'd have gone to the lowest point, but that wasn't going to happen. She was bitter at that moment and she just needed to calm down a little before interacting with the rest of the student body. Not really expecting anyone to wander up the owlery during that time, she couldn't help but feel unlucky as she saw Draco emerge through the doors. Not seeing the point of being there to find the calm that she needed, she quickly raced towards the door, to which Draco was quick enough to stop her. "Let me go." Cho muttered while continuously keeping her glassy eyed gaze out the door.

"About that old thing. I found it on my desk and I took the liberty of taking it. You should thank me for not throwing it away." Draco proudly explained while keeping his grip on her arm.

"Thank you…" Cho replied motionless.

Draco, irritated with Cho's unmoved response, quickly pulled his hand away and pushed Cho slightly away, hoping that she'd shout at him for that. He wanted her to react, a reacting that he was used to—that he thought as being _normal._ "What's wrong with you?" He asked confused, even though a part of him was a little bit concerned. Cho moved her glassy-eyed orbs onto Draco. Her eyes bore into her soul which caused Draco to wonder if she is as happy as what she wants people to think. Without another second to spare, tears began to roll down her porcelain cheeks, causing Draco to fluster a little. "Wait, is this about that journal? Merlin's sake, you have it already. It's not like I'd want that thing anyway." Draco added.

Emotions weren't acceptable in the Malfoy vocabulary. It was better to die than to cry, was what Lucius had always reminded Draco. Draco, who tried to be a rock most of his life—still and unmoved—found Cho's sudden breakdown a shock. To be honest, he didn't know how to handle things like this, nor would he attempt to learn how to. Not saying another word, Draco moved towards the door, but Cho's soft words made him stop. "He died today, and I didn't even remember. How could I forget…." Cho mumbled as she slowly fell down to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.

Draco turned around and watched as Cho, helplessly, cried her eyes out. He had never seen her this sad. She always seemed composed and happy in the public eye. "Wh-Who?" He asked, curious if she was talking about Cedric.

Cho continued to sob. Her eyes were slowly getting dry, but the feelings were still there. She needed a good cry and if it takes the whole night, she damn will. She looked up at Draco. "You wouldn't understand. You're father isn't dead. None of your loved ones are dead! Everyone that I love leaves me. All of them just die, and it's because of insensitive people like you that remind me why they die!" Cho mumbled uncontrollably. "Just leave me! NOW!" She ordered as she sulked her head back down and continued to cry. Cho didn't speak her mind out quite often, but everything was a blur to her at that moment, that she didn't care anymore.

Draco, frowning a little, left.

—

Harry turned around on his seat as he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Yes?" He asked the unfamiliar Slytherin standing behind him. Hermione and Ron's gaze moved to the Slytherin as well.

"For you." The boy simply said as he handed Harry a folded note, to which he quickly opened.

Upon reading the note, Harry quickly hopped off his seat, causing quite a stir among the few that surrounded him. "What's wrong Harry?" Hermione asked confused.

"It's Cho. I think she's in trouble. I'll be right back." He replied, before racing out the Great Hall.

On the way out, Harry had managed to bump into none other than Draco Malfoy. "Watch it Potter!" Draco hissed as he dusted off his robes. Ignored, Draco proceeded to walk towards the Slytherin table, where the same boy that had handed Harry the note had walked past him. "Did you give it?" Draco subtly asked, before the boy was far away from earshot.

"Yea…" The Slytherin replied before he sat a few seats down.

"I thought you weren't hungry?" Blaise asked after Draco had sat next to him.

"Well, I am now." He replied as he reached over and grabbed a piece of chicken.

"Where have you been anyway?" Pansy asked curiously as she watched Draco eat.

"Just around." He replied.

While others felt that their day was as eventful as it could get, others felt that the day was something they shouldn't have looked forward to…to begin with.

—

_Hey,_

_Cho is in the owlery. You should check up on her._


	7. Chapter 7

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Wow! Two Chapters in two days! I'm proud of myself! Haha. Anyway, I have a court hearing tomorrow (Yes, I got a driving ticket :( ), so I've been stressed out all day today, and so I made two things today! I wrote a chapter and I made a trailer for this fanfiction (CAN I HEAR A CHYEAH!)). TRAILER: www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=k02QhG9cXsI

I hope you guys like the trailer :)

**_Sango's Counterpart:_** Yes, the plot is finally is kickin'. Sorry it took five chapters for that, but I told myself I'm not rushing this story, I'm just going to let it flow naturally. I usually do that, rush stories. I'm starting to play around with Draco, trying to see where I could insert little 'acts of kindness' in his life, haha. I know he's a nice boy, he's just pressured with life, in general to be someone he isn't. Oh Harry, when will he ever learn that girls aren't still dolls :P I'm always happy to read your (and anyone's really) comments, hope to hear from you again!

Everyone (silent readers and non-silent), thanks for reading! I do appreciate the support! Hope y'all like the Trailer, comment on it too!

Hate it or love it, comment on it!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of these characters; they are solely the creation of none other than Ms. Rowling herself.

* * *

Nestled on the ground of the highest point in the castle was a very fragile raven. She whimpered softly to herself while the cold breeze wrapped around her like sheer blanket. Footsteps could be heard and heavy panting as the newcomer stopped right in front of the door.

"Cho!" Harry called out as he quickly knelt down to check up on Cho, who was at this point, curled up on the stone cold floor. "You're cold!" He added upon feeling Cho's cold, porcelain cheeks.

"H-H-H-Harry?" Cho mumbled as she managed to sit up—her body frail from losing all her energy to crying. "W –W-hat are you doing here?"

"That's not important, what's important is we get you somewhere warm. Here, let me help you." Harry answered as he swooped Cho's body into his arms. "I'll take you to the hospital wing." He simply added.

"I-I'm fine. I'm not hurt." Cho replied while she held tight onto Harry. "How did you know I was in there?" She asked.

"I received a note from someone." Harry replied as he gently set Cho down on the ledge of a staircase, where he took the privilege of taking his robe off and wrapping it around Cho. Digging through his pockets, he took a hold of the note and gave it to Cho. "Here…someone from Slytherin handed it to me." Harry added.

Cho took the note and read it. Quickly, she turned her attention back to Harry. "Who wrote this?" She asked, wondering if it was the very person she was thinking of.

Harry simply shrugged. "I didn't know him, but what exactly happened there? Were you attacked?" Harry asked curiously.

Before Harry could think of more crazy theories, she quickly replied, "No! I wasn't attacked. I just needed a place to think and the owlery was the best option. Maybe someone saw me go up there and was curious as to why it took me a long time to _send a letter._"

"But why woul—"

"Harry, nothing bad happened. Whoever sent the note was probably just concerned; nothing more to it." Cho quickly interrupted. "I'm going to head back to the commons, I'm not really in the mood to do anything else but sleep." Cho added. And with that said, Cho quickly hopped off the ledge and handed Harry his robe and the note.

"Cho, wait." Harry stopped her from leaving. "About earlier, I-I"

"It's fine. I'm the one to apologize. Clearly, I blew out of proportion. It'll never happen again." Cho cut in. It's as if tears were beginning to form under her eyes once more. She was clearly an emotional wreck that night. _Oh stop it Cho!_ She thought to herself.

"No Cho, I-"

"-You and Hermione are really good friends and I should understand that. Anyway, I'm tired. I'll see you tomorrow," was all Cho said, before quickly setting off on the opposite direction.

It was quite a walk from one side of the castle to the other. As Cho rubbed her arms to keep herself warm, she kept thinking of what had happened in the owlery. _Was it Draco who sent that note? It has to be him. He's the only one who saw me in there._ Cho thought to herself as she entered the empty Ravenclaw commons. _But why would he? It's not something he would do. But, I mean, there's no other way it could be someone else. _Cho continued to argue with her brain as she prepared for bed. Slipping under her covers, she slowly reached for her book bag and grabbed a hold of the journal. "I thought I had lost you." She whispered to herself as she kissed the leather-bound cover, before tucking it under her bed. And before she laid her head down on her pillows, her mind couldn't stop thinking of him.

—

Draco, idly, doodled away on his notebook as he sat up on his bed. It only took Blaise's obnoxious slap on his shoulder to bring him back to reality. "Yo, you've been daydreaming all supper. What's gotten into you?"

Draco simply looked blankly at Blaise and shrugged. "Tired. Good night." Draco replied before slipping under his covers. It was obvious that the boy didn't want conversation.

"Night." Blaise replied as he moved to his dresser.

Throughout the night, Draco couldn't get some sleep. He continued to toss and turn on his bed, while the rest of his housemates slept soundly on theirs. Not being able to lay any longer, he took the liberty of moving him and his thoughts to the commons. Grabbing his robes and his prefect badge, he walked quietly across the room and out the dormitory. Seeing that no one was out there, he quietly made his way to the couches. Surprised that he was wrong, he immediately turned around, but was instantly stopped by a voice. "I'm on my way up anyway, you don't have to leave." Draco simply ignored the voice and was prepared to return to the dorms, but the voice was persistent. "Here, see." The voice pointed out as she gathered her things. "I didn't know that the _prince_ was too choosy with whom he shares the commons with." The voice added.

Irritated with the sarcasm coming from this stranger, Draco turned around and asked frankly. "Do I know you?"

The girl simply chuckled and walked closer to the boy. Kindly, she offered a hand to which Draco simply stared at. "Astoria Greengrass. We've seen each other around, but haven't been cordially introduced."

"I have no intentions of being introduced to anyone, anytime soon." Draco simply replied as he coldly looked at Astoria's stretched out hand.

"Fine then, have a _good evening_." Astoria mumbled sarcastically before exiting towards the dormitory.

Draco rolled his eyes, uninterested, before sitting on the couch. The fire kept him warm, while his eyes blankly stared deeply into its flames. _I wonder what happened to her?_ He caught himself thinking, and before you know it, he quickly tried to cover it. _Damnit Draco! Stop thinking about her! _ Frustrated, he reached for a pillow and plopped it on his face as he leaned back. Shutting his eyes, yesterday's events flashed through his mind like a movie being played over and over. Irritated than ever, Draco shoved the pillow off him and sat straight up. _So that journal is her father's. But why was she so upset? Was she talking about HIS death? Wait, I know her parents are still alive. It must be Cedric who she was referring to then, but she mentioned father . It mu—_

"Draco?"

Draco quickly turned around and was gob smacked to see Cho standing there. To his surprise he muttered a confused, "Cho?" To which he quickly panicked and cautiously rubbed his eyes, knowing that HE MUST BE dreaming. Blinking, he looked at the mistaken visage of none other than Pansy. "Pansy!" He spoke out confused.

"Yeah, are you okay?" Pansy asked confused, stepping closer to the boy.

Draco nodded, thankful that Pansy didn't hear him call her Cho. "W-What are you doing out here?" He asked as he tiredly rubbed his eyes.

"Astoria was ranting about you in there, I had to check if you were alright." Pansy replied as she took another step closer. Placing a gentle hand on his arm, Pansy asked again, "are you alright Draco? It's past midnight, shouldn't you be getting some sleep?"

"Yeah, I'm heading back to the dormitory now." He answered, knowing that daydreaming about someone he shouldn't even be wasting his time thinking about means that he was VERY TIRED. Ignoring Pansy's gesture, he paced towards the dormitory, leaving Pansy more accustomed to his cold replies.

The next day proved to be the odd one out of the week. The sun wasn't shining brightly, nor was the atmosphere in its warmest. Cho, hesitantly, woke up as her brown hues studied the walls of the room. "Hey Ms. Cho Chang! Do you have any plans of waking up at all?" Marietta asked as she made her bed.

Cho slowly sat up and rubbed her sleepy eyes. "What time is it?" She asked, yawning.

"7:00 am. If you plan on getting breakfast, I suggest getting your lazy bum off that bed and putting on a fresh pair of knickers and your robes!" Marietta replied as she sat down on her newly made bed. "Today's Thursday, so we don't have a first period. Why do I know this? This is because….." she continued on.

Cho, half awake, simply nodded along as she moved about to prepare herself for the day. Not really processing what Marietta was saying, Cho simply followed along. "Let's go get some breakfast then…" She tiredly replied as soon as she was done getting dressed.

The Great Hall was packed as usual. Taking their respective places, Cho sluggishly reached for a croissant. "What did you say again you were going to do for first period?" Cho asked Marietta.

"I was going to the library. I signed up to help out with some shelving for Madam Pince, ask me why I did that, I don't know." Marietta chuckled as she bit into her bread. "How about you?"

"I'll probably head to the library. I need to catch up on a few things." Cho replied as she took a sip of her juice.

"Hey Cho…Is it me or does Malfoy keep glancing at our table?" Marietta leaned in to whisper.

Subtly, Cho turned around to see if this was true. By some divine mistake, Draco had caught her looking at him, or was it the other way around. Flustered, she immediately turned back around, facing Marietta. "Probably not…hurry up, you don't want to keep Madam Pince waiting." Cho rushed.

On the Slytherin table, Draco bit hard on his lip right after his eyes met that of Cho's. He didn't know why he was quite flustered inside. Was it because he was caught glancing at her? _Ridiculous Draco._ He thought to himself as he tried to focus his attention elsewhere. Turning to Blaise, he asked. "Do you know if Professor Umbridge wants to meet with us today?"

Blaise simply shrugged as he bit into his food. "Beats me. Is it even Thursday today?"

Ignoring Blaise's question, he focused back onto finishing his breakfast, while making subtle glances towards the Ravenclaw table. By the time breakfast had finished, Cho had already left the Great Hall.

While Marietta was slavi—shelving, rather, her way through numerous stacks of books, Cho was quietly settled somewhere in the library. With quite a stack in front of her, she busied herself with homework.

"Mr. Malfoy! I have told you before where to find this book. I will not tell you again!" Madam Pince's particular voice was within earshot of Cho's. Then again, that's not what piqued her interest, the name Madam Pince mentioned did. Turning her attention towards the librarian's voice, she saw none other than Draco. "Children these days, they never learn." Madam Pince mumbled as she walked the opposite direction.

Cho, unsure of what to do, wavered if she should ask Draco about the note Harry had received. She was almost positive that it had come from Draco, but what kept her from asking was that the rude commentary that Draco, as always, would put out. Wanting a little distraction from doing homework, Cho boldly made her way to Draco, who was busy reading off a list of titles on the shelf. Faking a cough, hoping that it'll grab Draco's attention, Cho looked around to make sure that no one was around, before speaking softly. "Hey."

Draco, prior, had already noticed that Cho was sitting close by. He just didn't want to be THAT obvious that he knew. Irritated with the useless librarian having to scold him, he began skimming through different books hoping that he'd find what he needed. However, upon seeing that Cho was somewhat moving on in through his peripherals, his spine began to stiffen, as if he was nervous that she was walking towards him. Hearing her bad attempt of a fake cough, he coolly ignored it, until she had greeted him, to which he slowly turned to face her. "You really have problems Chang. Following people is illegal, did you know that?"

Cho ignored his half-ass comment once again and parted her lips, ready to reply. "I was just wondering if I could ask you a quick question?"

Draco's heart rate quickened upon hearing Cho's request. _What does she want?_ He thought to himself. Although his insides were slightly worried, his face remained smug and composed. "What is it? I don't have all day." He replied with a raised brow.

Cho looked down at her shoes, before meeting Draco's grey eyes. "Someone told Harry that I was at the owlery last night. Apparently, someone from Slytherin had told him this. Was it you?" She asked, hoping that Draco would be truthful. She knew that it HAD to be him.

Draco felt his heart drop. He never liked confrontations. "Ha! What makes you think that Chang? I wouldn't care if you were rotting up in that owlery." He replied like usual.

"I see. Oh, and another thing."

"What is it? If this is another one of yo—"

"Thank you." Cho quickly interrupted, before turning around and moving towards her seat.

Draco, mouth slightly agape, looked at Cho as she walked back to her table. Remotely confused, he quickly turned around to head the opposite way, but to his dismay, he had clumsily bumped into someone. "Watch where you're going will you?" He scowled to the girl, who was now down on the ground with some books around her.

"MR. MALFOY! KEEP YOUR VOICE DOWN!" Madam Pince shushed as she walked behind him and hit him cautiously with a book, to which Draco instantly winced from.

Cho peered to her right and watched the little commotion happening. After a few more minutes or so, Draco had walked out of the scene and so did Madam Pince. Frowning, realizing who the person on the ground was, Cho quickly ran towards the aid of her friend, who was busy stacking the books that fell on the floor with her. "Marietta, are you okay?" Cho asked.

Marietta chuckled quietly. "Wow, you're actually the only one in this library who cares about me being pushed to the ground with ten thousand books in her hand." She replied sarcastically. "Yea..yea..i'm fine." She added.

Cho slowly helped her friend up as well as helped her with stacking the books up. "What happened there anyway? I just heard books falling and Madam Pince yelling."

"Malfoy, being stupid as he is, ran into me and scowled at me. Madam Pince heard him and scolded him. I think she scolded him because of how loud he scowled not because he pushed me to the floor." Marietta claimed.

Cho frowned even more as she helped dust Marietta's robes. "Just ignore them. Let me help you with these." She offered as she began shelving some of the books in her hand.

"These are all in the next shelf, except this." Marietta said as she handed Cho a book. "I think Malfoy dropped it."

Cho, being curious, took it and looked at the book. "It's a Chinese-English dictionary." Cho pointed out. "What is he do—" pausing mid sentence, that's when she realized what Draco may be doing with that book in his possession. "Ah... I just remembered, I have to talk to Roger about Quidditch practice." Cho added.

Marietta nodded, "alright then. Well, I'll see you later!" She replied before moving to the next shelf, while Cho quickly gathered her things and ran out the library, hoping that Draco was still around.

Draco wanted to get out of that place as quick as possible. He had never felt confused and nervous at the same time, especially in front of someone unimportant. Realizing that he had dropped the book he was supposed to checkout, he hissed in a panic, hoping that no one had picked it up, especially a particular Ravenclaw. Upon turning a corner, he happened to bump into one of his professors, Professor Umbridge. "Mr. Malfoy! Do watch where you're going dear boy!" Dolores pointed out.

"Professor! I apologize." Draco replied as he stepped back a little.

"Well, it can't be helped now can it? Ah! Which reminds me, the very person I wanted to see. Now, I wanted to tell you and hopefully you'd tell your friends as well, that I will be cancelling today's meeting. I have urgent news from the ministry asking me to report immediately." Dolores spoke.

Draco nodded politely. "Of course professor. I—"

"—But that doesn't mean that you and your friends would stop what I asked you all to do. You all are still keeping close watch of…" Dolores paused to make sure that no one was around before continuing, "…of your classmates, I assume."

Draco nodded again. "Yes, professor. I—"

"—That's good! Well, I must be off. Have a good day Mr. Malfoy. The ministry and I are thankful for you and your friends' dedication to higher edu—." Dolores quickly interrupted herself as soon as she saw that it wasn't just Mr. Malfoy and herself who were around. "Ah…Ms. Chang. What a pleasant surprise. Aren't you supposed to be in class?"

Draco quickly turned around to find a slightly panting Cho standing behind him. With furrowed brows, he looked at her questioningly. Cho returned his look with one of hers, before shifting her eyes onto the professor's. "I just came from the library professor."

Dolores looked from Cho to Draco, before landing her piercing blue eyes back at Cho. "Well, I do hope that you are telling the truth dear. Skipping classes is something I highly frown upon. Anyway, I must be off now. Stay out of trouble now." She replied, before leaving both Cho and Draco to wonder amongst themselves.

"You're the same as your boyfriend, weasel and that mudblood, enjoying the opportunity to eavesdrop at peo—"

"You dropped this." Cho quickly interrupted, stretching a hand out that held the book.

Draco looked at the book, then to Cho's face. "I don't know what you're talking about." He quickly denied.

Cho pulled her hand back and clutched onto the book. "Oh..I see. I must've made a mistake." She replied.

Draco simply snickered. "I see you've picked up making bad assumptions from Potter. I don't even know how he can stand you? Pathetic. Well, I really don't give a damn as to whom he decides to shag. You think that you're special to him? He's probably just using you since he doesn't have another option. If I knew better Chang, I'd think twice before snogging that scar faced boy of yours. Merlin knows if he's been messing around, especially with that mudblo-" Draco stopped talking instantly as soon as he saw Cho facing down. "Pathetic, you can't answer everything with crying Chang." Was all Draco said before turning around and walking the opposite direction.

Cho simply stood there, softly crying to herself. She knew that Draco could be harsh, but by far, those comments were meaner than the ones in the past. Insecurities aligned, she couldn't believe that it wasn't only her that noticed Harry and Hermione's closeness. To top it off, it was their archrival that had said it in front of her face. At that point, she wished that Cedric was still with her, comforting her every time she shed a tear. Wiping her tear stained eyes, she walked the opposite direction.

Draco stopped for a moment to look back, wondering if Cho was close behind. Seeing that no one else was around, he quickly leaned against a wall to catch his breath. It's as if he's been trying to catch his breath since he had walked out of that library. Keeping a moment to himself, he couldn't believe what he was feeling…deep regret.

—

"Thank you everyone for coming on such a short notice. We're probably going to make today's meeting as quick as possible since we all have school work to catch up on." Harry began as he paced back and forth. "As for today, we would just work on our Patronuses and perhaps start with a few disarming spells."

The rest of the students paid close attention to Harry, but Cho was in a completely different realm. Throughout the whole duration of the meeting, she could not perform her Patronus correctly, which completely embarrassed her. By the time the meeting ended, Cho was just desperate to get out of there.

"Cho, are you alright?" Harry asked as he noticed Cho being quite distracted.

Blinking, Cho nodded. "Yes, oh…the meeting ended?" She asked, curious as to why there were only a few of them in there.

"Five minutes ago. You seem distracted, you're positive you're alright?" Harry asked once more.

"Harry, let's go. Ron and I have decided that we all shall do our schoolwork in the library. Less distract-" Hermione noticed that Harry was talking to Cho, to which she quickly bit her lip and shook her head in embarrassment. "Ah…sorry…never mind, we'll just meet you outside." And with that said, she quickly pulled Ron out of the room.

Cho wasn't fazed by another one of Hermione's interruptions. She was probably immune to them by now. Looking back at Harry, she simply offered him a VERY weak smile. "I'm fine Harry. You should go, Hermione and Ron are waiting for you."

Harry sighed internally. He didn't know if Cho was still upset about him and Hermione. Clearly, Hermione was a sister to him, but for most, this wasn't the case. "Cho, this weekend. Let's go to Hogsmeade together." He asked, wondering if his timing was right.

Cho nodded and smiled a little wider. She really did appreciate that Harry was trying. Moving closer, she noticed the familiar picture clipped on the mirror that stood behind Harry—Cedric's smiling face. Shutting her eyes, as if trying to stop a tear from shedding, she softly pressed her red lips against Harry's for a quick moment, before pulling a few centimeters back.

Harry, still shocked that he was dating one of the prettiest girls in the school, simply kept his eyes on Cho's beautiful face. Bringing a hand up, he softly caressed her cheeks and went in for another kiss.

—

"So…you and Harry are going to Hogsmeade together? This weekend?" Marietta pried even further as she giggled consciously to herself.

Cho, having slightly recovered from that afternoon's events, offered a slight smile. Yes, she was happy that her and Harry get to spend time together, but she didn't understand why she wasn't jumping up and down, bathing in utter happiness. Marietta, having noticed her friend's subtlety, chucked a pillow towards Cho. "Oi! Are you even listening? I mean, you have to wear something cute! Not to risqué of course, but something that screams, I'm taken, so sorry boys!" Marietta continued. "I mean, you ne—" Marietta paused as soon as she heard constant knocks on the window. "Woah, is that an owl?" Cho quickly turned around to see what Marietta meant, and there it was, an owl knocking its beak on their window. Confused, Cho quickly opened the window to let the bird inside. The gorgeous black owl swooped inside, flew around the room once and instantly landed on the table next to Cho. "I think it's for you?" Marietta claimed curious. Cho blinked as she saw what the owl had for her. Taking the stemmed white rose from its beak, Cho then grabbed a quill and tore of a piece of parchment and scribbled a neat, 'Thank You, it's beautiful,' and tied the note around the bird's ankle. She softly scratched the owl's head before it took its flight. Marietta watched Cho and shook her head in pure disbelief. "You and your admirers. It can't be from Harry, that I'm sure."

Cho walked over to close the window, before slipping under her covers; she looked at the rose then back to the window. "Really? Why do you think that?" Cho asked as she looked at Marietta.

"His owl isn't black, last time I checked." Marietta replied.

Cho smiled as she softly caressed the petals on the rose. Not a lot of people knew she liked white roses. Setting the rose on top of her table, she couldn't help but hint at the owl. The owl looked familiar, but she couldn't pin point where exactly did she see that owl, besides—perhaps—at the owlery and that night. Satisfied, she finally decided to retire for the day.

—

Draco stayed up to finish his Herbology homework from three days ago. Yawning, he quietly pushed his books aside, preparing to retire in his own bed, but only to be stopped by a soft knock on the window. Turning around, he found Damien knocking on his window. "Hey there…" he softly spoke as he opened the window for him. "What do you have there?" He asked.

Taking the note from the bird, he gently scratched the top of his head before letting it take its flight back to the owlery. Reading the tiny parchment, one could've sworn that a smile, not a snicker, smirk, nor grin, but a smile formed on his lips. Draco set the note on his table, before slipping under his covers. He was glad that he would sleep without guilt in his mind.

_Thank You, it's beautiful_


	8. Chapter 8

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

Hey guys, I said I'd update as quick as possible, but summer plans soon kicked in and I hardly had time to sit in front of my computer this weekend. So, I wrote a very special chapter. By far this is my favorite (till I write another chapter that I find to be my favorite. haha). Oh, remember when I said I had a court hearing, well THANK YOU MERLIN, the judge disregarded my ticket and so I don't have to pay that fine! YEE! That seriously made my weekend so much better.

**_Juliet:_ **Draco can't definitely keep his mind of Ms. Chang. He always sees her and with that fact, it's very difficult not to think about her hehe. As for caring about her, we're just not sure about that yet, we'll have to find out! Which is why I am hopeful to hear from you soon! Thanks for reading!

Everyone (silent readers and non-silent), thanks for reading! I do appreciate the support! Oh, and check the trailer for the story if you guys haven't yet. I'd love to hear your comments on the trailer and chapter (negative or positive).

Hate it or love it, comment on it!

* * *

"Ugh! One more day and we're free..." Marietta groaned as she buttered her biscuit. "Would you mind handing me the jam?" She added upon turning towards Cho. Cho reached out for the jar and handed it to Marietta, while subtly glancing towards the Slytherin table. She couldn't help but be curious as to what Draco and the rest of his friends were laughing at. Marietta, having noticed Cho's interest towards the snakes, immediately snapped her fingers in front of her friend. "Oi, what are you looking at?" She asked.

Cho quickly averted her eyes and looked back at Marietta. "Ah, I was just looking at Iris. She dyed her hair you know." Cho lied.

Marietta chuckled quietly as she spotted the now blond witch. "She was honestly better as a raven-haired. Come to think of it, she'd be better off bald."

Cho, humored, elbowed her friend softly.

Breakfast proved to be one of the least scrumptious meals in Hogwarts, for Cho that is. Lazily sitting down in her first period, she waited patiently for the day to finally end. The weekend couldn't have come any slower than it already is, to which Cho found as excruciatingly tedious. Herbology, like always, produced someone ending up in the hospital wing—that was a given. Having no interest in plants, whatsoever, Cho, hopeful, sat down quietly in Charms, waiting for the class to begin. Minutes later, the very person she hoped didn't show up, sat next to her once again.

Draco sat quietly next to Cho. After what he had said to her the previous day, he didn't expect much conversation coming from her. After all, he **wouldn't** expect any word coming from her at all. After the professor has given orders to partner up, Cho and Draco did not have any other choice but to deal with each other.

"Now class, today, we will be studying a few non-verbal charms. Now, the point of a non-verbal charm is to not speak it out loud, which gives us, wizards and witches, the advantage of simply executing the charm with pure thought. One of the simplest non-verbal charms is the Repleo charm." The professor began as he stepped off his stool and moved towards the cup that sat in the middle of the classroom. "The Repleo charm simply replaces the contents of an empty container with what it previously held. For example…" The professor continued on with instructions as he pointed his wand at the cup, and soon after, the cup had been filled with pumpkin juice. The class awed in amazement as they watched the cup fill, to which the professor smiled. "Now class, I'd like you all to turn to the person sitting next to you and practice the charm. Remember, the charm is non-verbal, so I shouldn't be able to hear words flying everywhere. Alright, you all may begin."

Cho, hesitantly, turned towards Draco, who was by that time, already looking at her. "Do you want to do it first?" She asked, almost in an afraid whisper.

Draco shrugged as he took his wand out and pointed it towards the cup. The cup soon began filling up with feathers. "Feathers?" Draco mumbled—confused— as he looked at Cho, who was confused, herself.

"Ah, each desk has a cup that contained particular contents, may it be bits and bobs. Don't be afraid if you see socks filling up the cup, not that it would of course." The professor further explained with a giggle.

Cho quickly emptied the contents of the cup, before pointing her wand at it. To her unfortunate surprise nothing happened. Frowning, she attempted once more, and nothing had happened again. "That's odd…hmmm." She muttered.

"You're doing it wrong Chang. You mustn't focus on the word itself, but actual say it in thought." Draco explained. "Do it right! I don't plan on having you keeping me in here till you bloody well master the charm." He added.

Cho took her wand once more and pointed it at the cup. In a matter of seconds, the cup began filling up with feathers. Her eyes smiled brightly as it did. "It actually works! Thank You!" She claimed excited as she looked at Draco. Immediately, noticing her upfront emotion, she quickly suppressed her excitement and faced the front of the class.

_I can't believe this girl calls herself a Ravenclaw. She can't even do a simple charm. On the other hand, she at lea—hold on Draco, you're defending her in your thoughts. Stop it!_ Draco simply ignored Cho's words and focused his attention elsewhere.

The day, to Cho's delight, went quickly. Finishing the last class of the day, she immediately walked back to her dormitory and dropped off her book bag, before leaving for supper. On her way, she had bumped into a few familiar faces. "Hey Cho." Neville greeted with a slight nervousness in his voice.

Cho turned around to see who had greeted her. "Hey Neville, how are you?" She asked.

"Quite alright. Have you seen the new decree?" Neville asked, referring to Umbridge's outrageous laws.

Cho simply shook her head. "I haven't, did Filch just put it up?"

Neville nodded sadly. "It says that Professor Umbridge has the right to question certain students about suspicious student activity on school grounds."

Cho's forehead wrinkled in deep thought. That meant that the professor might be having her suspicions about Dumbledore's Army. "Well thank you for telling me Neville." Cho replied before separating ways as they entered the Great Hall. Sitting herself next to Marietta, she turned to her and said. "Marietta h-"

"—have I heard about the new decree, of course." Marietta interrupted as she leaned her elbow against the table. "She's definitely on our case. I'm not surprised if sooner or later Professor Umbridge find out about th—" Marietta quickly stopped upon seeing Draco pass by. "Why is he sitting so close?" Marietta whispered to Cho as she watched Draco take a seat directly behind Cho and Marietta.

Cho subtly turned around and caught Draco glancing at her for a quick second, before turning his attention towards Pansy. "I don't know." Cho whispered in return.

Draco couldn't really hear Cho and Marietta's conversation; it was probably because Pansy was too loud of a talker next to him. "You're too loud." He commented.

"Well I'm sorry, it's not like you're actually listening to me, to begin with." Pansy retorted.

"Now, now Pansy, don't get your knickers in a twist. He's right anyway, it's not like we're across the room and you have to TALK LIKE THIS!" Blaise amusingly pointed out, and with that, he immediately received a flying biscuit to his face. "EY! Stop throwing things at me already!" He complained.

Draco simply found his friends, sometimes, a headache.

Supper ended early that evening. Soon, students began to flee to their respective common rooms. "I have to go get something from Professor Flitwick, I'll see you in the dorms." Cho lied as she waved goodbye and moved the opposite direction.

Marietta, confused, simply nodded and waved. "Ohohohkay…" She responded as she followed the rest of her housemates.

Finding that there was no one else around, Cho quietly and quickly made her way to the third floor. She had a purpose that night. Standing in front of the familiar wall that soon morphed into a familiar black door, Cho cautiously entered the room of requirements. Not to her knowledge, someone had seen her.

Draco, having noticed Cho separate from the crowd of Ravenclaws, decided to follow her. After all, he had specific orders from Professor Umbridge about_ watching over a few people_. Quite curious as to what Cho was up to, he followed her to the very same place where he had first caught her. The moment Cho had entered the door, Draco immediately ran towards the door before it disappeared, to his surprise as he opened the door, it didn't lead to the same room that she was in. "Bloody Hell!" He cursed as he dusted himself off after crashing into a pile of brooms and mops.

Cho practiced her spells over and over again until she got them right. She was tired of embarrassing herself in front of Harry and the rest. Being a Ravenclaw had its pressures. She was supposed to be seen as a very smart intellect, but really, she was like any struggling student who strives to get Os in all her subjects. Concentrating hard on her Patronus, she tried to think of something happy, but all the 'happy' she could think of was minimal compared to how much the spell needed. "Bollocks!" She muttered after eliciting only a few sparks off her wand. Hearing the clock strike 11, she immediately caught grasp that it was past curfew and that she needed to get back to the commons right away, before anyone sees her. Unaware that Draco was waiting patiently behind that door, Cho opened it and managed to get caught. "Heavens Merlin!" Cho gasped.

"Surprised Chang?" Draco, sinisterly, asked as he pulled Cho further out and instantly shoved her aside. "If I knew better, you were doing something related to Potter."

"It's nothing, honestl—"

"10 points from Ravenclaw." Draco immediately interrupted. "There's more where that came from. Tell me what is Potter up to!"

"I don't know." Cho argued quietly, striving to look away from Draco's piercing orbs. She didn't want to speak any further as it may cause her house to lose more points. However, last time she did that, she lost more points than imagined.

Grabbing her arm once more, hoping to shake it out of her, he slowly repeated himself. "What is Potter up to?"

Cho feeling his grip tighten simply looked down. "I-I-I don't know." She mumbled once more. This time, she could feel her tears well up under her eyes. "I-I do—"

"Mrs. Norris, where are you?" Filch's voice echoed from a distance.

Draco quickly released his grip on Cho's arm and replaced it with a less firm grip on her wrist. _Damn, it's that squib!_ He thought to himself before pulling Cho towards the room of requirement. Yes, he was a prefect, but he was only allowed to be at the dungeons at this time of the night. "Quick! Get inside!" He ordered, before closing the door behind him. Leaning against the door, he could hear the caretaker's cat meow and hiss behind it. "That bloody squib and his cat." Draco cursed, before turning towards Cho, who was simply looking down at the ground. "Oh stop crying there and look for another way out you crybaby."

Cho, somewhat accustomed to Draco's harsh words, simply nodded and went about to finding another way out. Sadly, no door appeared. "I can't find an—"

"Well keep looking!" Draco retorted, while he himself searched about the room for any possible exits. "Bollocks! None."

As the two came to the conclusion that they would be stuck in there for a while, Draco moved towards a couch, while Cho sat at the far end of the room, next to a bookshelf that only contained a book. Trying to keep herself distracted, she quietly grabbed the book and began reading. Draco, watching her from afar, couldn't help but comment, "Do you think reading makes you smart? That's quite the generalization isn't it Chang."

Cho simply ignored his comment and continued on to read, which greatly annoyed Draco even more. "Why is it you don't talk back like that mudblood? You're quite the boring one aren't you Chang. I can't imagine what Potter or Diggory think of you. What a pathetic excuse of a—"

Cho had reached her threshold. Yes, she was quiet, proper, a push over sometimes and a crybaby, but one could only take so much insults until they snap. Taking her wand out and pointing it towards Draco, she immediately cursed out "Silencio!" before the boy could finish what he has to say.

Draco, terrified at what Cho had just done, immediately reached for his wand and pointed it at her. Unfortunately, he couldn't even say a letter.

Cho, quite impressed with what she had just done, stood up and walked towards the now silenced boy. Pointing her wand at Draco once more, she spoke out "Finite!"

Draco coughed loudly and was happy to hear his sound once more. His piercing grey eyes shifted to Cho once more, angry that she had done that. "Why you-"

Cho, not scared to do something far better than a silencing charm, pointed her wand towards Draco once more. "I honestly thought you'd stop." She said quite calmly.

Elongating his neck and drawing back a little, Draco kept his gaze at the tip of Cho's wand. He honestly was afraid at that point. "I'm stopping." He mumbled, trembling as he scooted further back into his seat. Cho looked at Draco and couldn't help but chuckle a little. She has never seen Draco that afraid, ever. It's as if she was in a dream. Having difficulty suppressing her laughter, she continued to laugh even more. Draco, irritated, stood up. "What's so funny?" He asked demandingly as he took a step towards Cho.

Cho shook her head and wrapped her arms around her tummy. It took her sometime to suppress her laughter. "No-Nothing..it's just, I haven't seen you that terrified. You should've seen the look on your face!" She replied.

Draco, at that point, was turning into a tomato—a bright red one. "It's not funny!" He grumbled as he turned around and sat back on the couch. "Go and check if that bloody cat is still on the prowl!" He ordered.

Cho breathed in and finally composed herself as she walked towards the door. Sadly, she could still hear Filch and his cat from behind. "They're still there." She said, turning to Draco, who was still sulking in the corner. Smiling to herself, she quietly returned to her corner and continued to read the book. Subtly, she would glance at Draco here and then.

Draco did the same. He pretended to be doing something in the opposite corner, but really, he was just glancing at Cho. He really did embarrass himself in front of her and he hated himself for that. "Bloody Hell.." He muttered to himself as he reached down his robe to grab a piece of parchment from his pocket. Folding it into swan, he took his wand out and immediately charmed it to flutter around the room. This instantly grabbed Cho's attention. As the paper swan landed on her, she smiled happily as she played with it. Draco, from the other end, took notice of Cho's smile. She was definitely easy on the eyes—more than that really. As the swan fluttered off again, Cho quickly rummaged through her pockets to see if she had any parchment she could use. Successful, she quickly folded it into a frog and with a point of her wand, it began hopping around the room, making her smile and giggle a little.

Draco watched in slight amusement as the paper frog hopped around and while his swan fluttered about. His eyes soon fall on Cho, who smiled seamlessly. But something about her smile was different. It's as if she was actually happy at that moment. Standing up, he quickly moved closer to Cho and uninvited, grabbed a hold of her book. "It's not like it's yours." Draco explained upon seeing Cho's surprised look, as he tore off a page. Quickly, he folded this into another swan. Cho watched Draco as he folded his paper swan. To her surprise, she found herself tearing a page as well. Draco smirked at the gesture. "Thought you were a goody two shoe." He added.

Cho began folding the page into a swan as well. "Where did you learn?" She asked as she continued to fold the paper.

"What's it to y—ah…" He paused, knowing that he might get more than a silencing charm if he continued on to be a prick. If they were going to be stuck in there together for a while, he needed to keep his mouth shut and stay alive. "...my mother taught me." He simply rephrased.

"It looks more polished than mine." Cho pointed out with a light chuckle as she showed her swan to Draco, to which Draco snorted at. "My father taught me how to make paper animals when I was younger. He picked it up in one of his travels." She added, her voice cracking a little. Draco, pretending not to listen, was really listening. He noticed the change in her tone as well as the slight sadness that replaced the happiness in her eyes. To add, not only was her face easy on his eyes, but also her voice was easy on the ears, unlike Pansy's, whose voice seemed worst than a crying hippogriff. Pointing his wand at Cho's swan and his, the two paper fowls flew in unison around the room. "Do you know how to make anything else?" Cho asked.

"No." was the simple reply of Draco.

Cho, who simply offered Draco a weak smile, saw that the boy was actually trying not to be a prick for once. It was a change, but it was somewhat refreshing. "Do you want me to teach you how to make a frog?" She asked.

Draco looked at Cho curiously. He didn't understand why she was nice to him. Besides the fact that she cursed him earlier, he had never heard her say anything mean to him. Studying her solemn face and how truly pretty she really was, Draco immediately averted his eyes and quickly stood up. "No." He replied coldly. Before he could stand up, the frog that Cho had made earlier, hopped closer. Draco quickly slapped a hand on it, and so did Cho.

Draco's hand lay idly on top of Cho's. His eyes soon met with hers as they looked deep within each other's gaze as if a line could be drawn from one's eyes to the other. He could almost see his reflection in her eyes upon closely looking into them and there was no doubt that she probably saw the same. Within a matter of seconds, realization hit the both of them and quickly, each individual retracted their own hand from the pile. "Filch is probably gone already." Cho muttered a little nervous as she quickly stood up and moved towards the door. In her mind, she couldn't help but think at how warm Draco's hand was. She didn't expect his skin to be warm than how his pale appearance would give off. Leaning her ear against the door, she neither heard a purr nor a sound. "They're gone." She added.

Draco, immediately, made his way to the door. Without a single word, he opened the door and left Cho behind.

—

"Cho Liberty Chang! Where were you last night?" Marietta immediately asked as soon as Cho had woken up.

Cho sleepily rubbed her eyes and blinked at Marietta's question. "Wh-What?" She asked a little bit dazed.

Marietta immediately pulled back the covers off Cho, forcing the girl to curl up into a ball. "Oh don't 'What' me! You went somewhere. You said you had to meet with professor Flitwick, but professor Flitwick was at the commons with us last night!" She scoffed.

"Marietta, it's still early." Cho pleaded as she reached for her covers and pulled them over her.

"It's past nine Ms. Chang. And! Shouldn't you be getting ready for your date wit—"

Cho immediately opened her eyes and jumped out of bed. "Harry!" She quickly claimed as she ran to the bathroom to prepare.

"I was just about to say that…" Marietta muttered as she watched Cho hurry off. Once Cho was finished, it had been too late to get breakfast, so the two had decided to just get something at Hogsmeade. "What time did Harry say that you two would meet?" Marietta asked as she took a sip of her tea.

"I honestly am not sure. He's just going to meet me here at the three broomsticks." Cho replied.

Marietta shook her head in defeat. "Honestly Cho, that's probably the number one thing in a date? Setting the time. Well, I can't stay here all morning. I have loads of things to finish by noon. I'll see you at dinner then?"

Cho nodded. "Yeah. Thanks for coming with me, though."

Marietta smiled and winked. "Of course! Oh, and by the way, you look super cute!" She replied, before trotting off.

Cho chuckled to herself as she took a sip of her tea. Looking around the half empty place, she couldn't help but wonder what was taking Harry so long. Three hours and forty-five minutes later, Harry was still nowhere to be seen. _Where on earth is that boy?_ Cho thought to herself as she got rather impatient. Hopeful as she peered over to see who had just entered, her forehead soon wrinkled into a frown when she saw no Harry James Potter walk in.

"Cho?" A voice spoke nearby.

Cho immediately directed her attention to none other than "Neville! I didn't see you." Immediately, a question fired out of her mouth. "Ah you didn't happen to see Harry this morning did you?"

Neville, nervous and frigid as usual, mumbled. "I-I-I did. He ah..He…asked me to tell you something."

The frown on Cho's lips could be traced. "Oh…"

"Ah…He couldn't make it. He was called for to do something…" Neville paused and leaned in a bit closer to whisper, "…something important."

"I see. Well, thanks for telling me." Cho muttered in reply before standing up and walking out of the Three Broomsticks. The weather outside wasn't as gloomy, per se. It was actually a warm and breezy afternoon. Walking further out into the desolate area of town, Cho, in pure disappointment, felt her tears softly stain her cheeks. She was irritated that Harry didn't understand that him and her are in a relationship together and that time was an essential in one. Sitting on a bench, Cho remained in solitude as she cried her feelings out.

"Y-You owes me fifteen Galleons you bastard! I didn—Oh." A rugged wizard quickly elbowed his companion as he tried to point out something on the bench.

"YEOW! Stop doing that you pompous—Oh, I see…" The other one grinned with reply.

As the two, low-life wizards, approached Cho, the witch, presumably, was unaware of their presence. Being caught off-guard as one of them sat next to her, Cho immediately found herself springing off the bench. The other man, as if ready to engulf Cho, laid his grimy fingers on her shoulder. "No need to rush poppet, we're just here to talk. Trying to make a little conversation." His yellow teeth could be seen behind his lips as they moved.

Cho forced a rather weak smile as she tried to shrug the man's hand off. "Ah, I have to go back. It's getting a bit late." Cho reasoned.

The wizard that sat on the bench, without hesitation, pulled Cho down by the arm and afterwards, draped his smelly arm over her. "Nonsense, it's only a quarter past noon. You have all the time in the world." He smiled sinisterly.

Cho, feeling VERY threatened, didn't know how she could reach for her wand without being noticed. "I really need to go—I"

The man, who stood behind the bench, immediately grabbed his wand and pointed it towards her neck. Caressing her cheek lightly with his free one as he talked. "Do you still need to go, pretty?"

Cho could feel her heart race as she felt the end of his wand against the skin on her neck. "N-N-N-No…" She muttered as her breathing deepened. "P-P-Please…Sir…I'll give y-y-you anything…j-j-just don't hurt me.." She pleaded while soft tears soon watered her eyelids.

"Ey you overgrown mop, she said anything!" The wizard sitting next to Cho cheered. "I haven't had a woman in such a long time, maybe a little taste won't hu—" The man couldn't finish his sentence. His body within seconds hit the ground. "W-hat the?"

Cho blinked as she saw the man beside her fall and with that, the man standing behind her had wrapped an arm around her neck with his wand still pointing at her. Cho looked around, hoping that Harry, or someone was there to save her, but she found herself surprised as the culprit for the wizard's fall on the ground revealed himself. "Let her go." He calmly spoke out.

The man, who held Cho hostage, chuckled. "No! Why? Is this you're little friend I—" Before the man could finish his sentence, Cho's savior had already fired a spell out.

"Let's go! Hurry up Chang! Don't be such a slowpoke!" Cho's savior claimed upon grabbing Cho by the arm and dragging her off quickly.

Back there, Cho felt that she was finally going to die. That all her frustrations in life were finally going to end. She didn't expect to die in the hands of two grimy and slimy wizards, but in that span of five minutes that those two cornered her, she was prepared to die. Her thoughts broke as soon as the two stopped running. Tear stained eyes looked up to thank her savior. "T-Thank you…"

Draco had wondered into Hogsmeade to buy a pair of socks. For some reason, his socks were disappearing one-by-one. Upon seeing the two grimy wizards walking towards the end of town, Draco had an urge to follow them and utter disgust was what greeted him as he saw them threatening Cho. "Do you just want to die Chang? Why don't you just blast you—" before Draco could finish, Cho had flung her arms around him.

Cho didn't understand why it was always Draco who was around when she was stuck in the deepest mud puddles. It was supposed to be Harry or Marietta who should help her through it, but it was always the _great_ Draco Malfoy. He actually reminded her of Cedric, and how he used to be her knight in shining armor. That little thought about Cedric, saddened her a little. Watching Draco's irritated expression lift onto his face as he began to lecture her, once again. Cho didn't know why, with some interesting explanation, that she found the urge to just embrace him, just like how she would just embrace Cedric to stop him from talking. Without thinking, her arms had sprung up and wrapped themselves around him.

Draco simply stood there, gob smacked. Here he was, standing in front of Cho as he, once again, had saved her bum from Merlin knows what, and after, was in a 'half-embrace' with her. Was he being punished was what half of his brain was thinking, but the other half contemplated whether or not he should wrap his arms around her waist. Of course, that half of the brain would lose by default. Pushing her off quickly, he awkwardly ran his hand through his silken, blond hair. "Next time, you're just going to end up dead!"

"I could've sworn I saw those two run up here! We should get that stupid boyfriend of hers. That dumb bloke!" A wizard scornfully hissed.

Draco and Cho trembled a little—to each their own—upon hearing voices emerge. Too late for them run, Draco looked both ways before doing the unthinkable. Throwing the hood of his jacket on his head, he immediately pushed Cho further against the tree that stood behind her and ultimately pressed his lips against her.

Cho really didn't have a say in the situation. She, herself, was panicking. As soon as she felt Draco's arms push her body against the tree, she had a sense of what was about to happen. Before she could say anything at all, she had her lips pressed against his. If explained in a very theoretical sense, Cho would tell people that kissing Draco was like kissing the dry lips of a house elf (not that she has kissed an house elf). However, truthfully, as his lips pressed deeper into her, she found her eyelids flutter shut and her arms, unconsciously, slide up his shoulders and wrap around his neck. She could taste the butterbeer, that he probably had, prior to saving her, on his lips. The smell of his perfume was ultimately engulfed by her system, which urged her to pull him closer to her. If we were speaking in the matter of truth and not theory, Cho would say that she actually enjoyed the kiss.

Draco, apparently, had no choice than to kiss Cho in that moment. He didn't want to have to deal with the two blokes trying to get their hands on him and Cho, so he just kissed her—a plan he hopped to distract them. The plan did work, but to his dismay, it also worked on him. Upon feeling Cho's arms slide up his shoulder and wrap themselves around his neck, with unconscious reciprocation, his arms slowly wrapped themselves around her tiny waist. Her sweet smelling perfume poured into his lungs like a drug that completely encompassed his system, urging him to deepen the kiss, while he slowly savored the strawberry tasting lips on his. Finding it difficult to breathe, he quickly broke the kiss and soon found his eyes staring into hers. At that point, all he wanted to do was kiss her again, and soon, he found himself leaning into her neck, ready to attack that soft skin with his lips, but Cho's voice soon broke his concentration and made him enter realization again.

"I-I-I think they're gone." Cho whispered.

Draco, faster than the speed of lightning, drew back his head and pulled his hood off. At that point, he much so wanted to inflict an _Avada Kedavra_ at himself. What was he thinking kissing Potter's girl? And much more, trying to prolong it! Half of him very much enjoyed kissing Cho, but half of him wanted to curse himself into oblivion. Looking at Cho's face, Draco's front—composed and cold—immediately enveloped himself. He had so much tension and frustration in him that he wanted to hit something, very well someone. Not uttering a word, he rudely turned around and walked off, leaving a confused Cho to wonder.

Cho watched as Draco walked away without saying anything. Truth is, she really didn't want him to comment or say anything. She was just too embarrassed at that point. Waiting for her breathing to normalize, she slowly hiked back up to the castle, hoping to whoever that she wouldn't bump into the two grimy wizards, Draco or Harry. A sense of guilt ran through her head as she kept her head low and walked on further, but she reasoned with her thoughts that she didn't have a choice. Seeing the gates into Hogwarts from a distance, relief colored her cheeks once more. Grinning quietly to herself, as Cho walked past the Great Hall, the smart Raven could only think about disproving one of her theories.

Who could've thought that kissing Draco Malfoy was something she'd try again.


End file.
